Bring It On
by Lenni George
Summary: What if Aaron Hotchner ended up with Lisa O'Reilly instead of David Rossi? An alternate usage of my OC. ***This Chapter is Now Closed! For the continuing story of Lisa and Hotch - Please see my new story "Life Goes On"*** Thank you for your support!
1. You know what happens when I go drinking

"_**Friends are as companions on a journey, who ought to aid each other to persevere in the road to a happier life."**_

_**Pythagoras**_

Aaron Hotchner sat at his desk, going through the many emails that had accumulated while he and David Rossi were in Boston. They'd intended to be there only enough to speak at the Terrorism Seminar then hop a commercial flight back to Washington. They ended up staying another two days, working the case that Eve Alexander brought to them.

He was grateful that they could help her, but now, he was behind on the work that had piled up while he was away. Or at least that was the excuse he would have given if someone at home had asked. Of course, there wasn't anyone at home to ask. This was the true reason he sat in his office. He'd checked his email while he was in Boston and had kept it pretty much up to date. The paperwork piled on his desk wasn't urgent. He could have gone home, but why bother?

Turning his attention back to his email, he found one from Lisa O'Reilly He smiled as he read, hearing her rich alto voice in the typed words.

"_Hey there, Hotch,_

_I've got the files you asked for before you took off for Boston. They're sitting here on my desk, waiting for you to come pick them up._

_Oh, and by the way, they were not easy to find, so besides the drink, you now owe me dinner. A very expensive dinner._

_Call me when you get back into the office or give me a yell over the weekend. I'll be around._

_Lisa"_

He laughed, knowing damn well that she'd make him pay up on the very expensive dinner.

He supposed that she was one of his closest friends, if by no other reason than the fact that they'd known each other for the bulk of their FBI careers. Jason Gideon recruited Lisa out of the Hostage Negotiation Unit and into the BAU barely a year after bringing him in. Being the new kids on the block, they bonded during those crazy years and had managed to remain close as time went on. She'd left the BAU back in 1998, when the government mandated that the FBI formed the Child Abduction Serial Murder Investigative Resources Center (CASMIRC). She threw herself into the development of the new unit and was now the Senior Agent and definitely poised to take over the Unit Chief position.

She loved the work, loved the cause, and spent many extra hours working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), to solve as many missing child cases as they could. She told him once, after way too many glasses of single malt scotch, that her biggest mistake in life was not having children. It didn't take a profiler to see the motivation behind her devotion to the job.

They'd stayed close during the years, supporting each other through their way up the supervisory ladder and through their personal lives. Despite their very crazy schedules, they'd always made a point to have lunch or a drink when time allowed. Lisa had been invited to many parties and bar-be-ques back when he and Hayley were still together. She knew all about the break up of his marriage and sat back, offering an ear, but never an opinion.

With a smile, he typed a quick reply.

"_Lisa, you vile woman,_

_What the hell are you still doing at your office on a Friday night?_

_So, you're holding my files hostage for food, are you? Fine. I will come get them on Monday morning. _

_How does dinner, tomorrow night, at Tim's Rivershore in Dumfries say 7?_

_Aaron"_

After everything that he'd been through lately, he could use a night out and a night out with Lisa usually turned into some sort of adventure. Laughing, he looked up on his wall to where a framed picture sat in the midst of framed awards. Besides the framed pre-school picture of Jack on his desk, it was the only other picture in the room. It was a picture of him, standing with Lisa, Dave Rossi and Jason Gideon, taken at a Christmas party back in the early 90's. Lisa, despite going on about how bad her mile high hair looked in the shot, had the same picture in her office.

Hotch firmly believed that Lisa's affair with Dave started that night, but they both denied it, swearing it didn't start until after the holidays. Looking at that picture, it didn't take a profiler to see the attraction between them.

No matter when it started, he remembered clearly when it ended. Just as he remembered the way he'd helped her regroup and get back on her feet. Hell, even Hayley was involved in that rescue mission. The first night that a drunken Lisa called him from a bar, obviously in tears, Hayley demanded that he get dressed, pick her up, and bring her back to the house. She'd spent the whole weekend with them, escaping with Hayley for a little retail therapy, and then coming home to cry on his shoulder.

The sound of her voice pulled him from his thoughts. "So, how pathetic are we? Sitting in our offices on a Friday night, emailing each other?"

He turned to the doorway to find her leaning against the door frame, holding a stack of folders. The sleeves of her pale blue button front blouse were rolled up and her dark red hair was pulled up in a loose bun, two sure signs that she'd been working hard for hours.

"Pretty damn pathetic, if you ask me," he returned with a laugh.

"What do you say we do that dinner tonight? We could be out to Tim's in twenty minutes," she coaxed, looking at her watch, "We'll still make the last hour of two for one drink night."

"Two for one drink night," he nodded, wondering if he'd be able to handle a wild night after the past couple of days.

"Come on, Hotch," she grinned, her green eyes twinkling, "You're not going to let me go alone, are you? You know what happens when I go drinking on my own."

"Yes, you end up drunk dialing me at two am to talk you out of going home with some sort of Congressman or something," he laughed.

"Right, so you see? You need to come with me," she continued.

Shaking his head, he laughed. "Okay, I'll come. I'm assuming those are my folders?"

"Yeah," she said, walking in and laying them on his desk. "I delivered my part of the bargain."

He pulled on his suit jacket, "Guess I'll deliver on mine. Come on."

_**If merely ''feeling good'' could decide, drunkenness would be the supremely valid human experience.**__**William James **__**  
1842-1910, American Psychologist, Professor, Author**_

Lisa O'Reilly wasn't sure which drink drove her into the category she would call "severely buzzed". She knew that she had to be severely buzzed because as the night went on, she found herself wanting very much to lay a killer lip lock on the man who'd been her best male friend for nearly 20 years.

In her defense, many women thought him attractive, in a preppy, clean cut kind of way. But she'd always known that, just as she'd always known what a decent, honest man he was and what a great friend he'd been to her through the years.

Now, as he leaned across the pool table to take his shot, she also decided that he had one hell of an ass and his lightweight wool trousers definitely helped to accentuate it.

Shaking her head, she watched as he sunk the 10 ball in the far corner. He stood, turned to look at her and winked. Turning back to the table, he looked at the two guys in their early twenties who thought it would be funny to challenge the "old couple" to a game of pool, and said, "12 ball in the side pocket."

With a subtle slide of the cue, he sunk that one as well. He missed his next attempt, then turned back with a shrug and walked over to her.

"Did you actually play any decent songs on the juke box?" he asked, as Britney Spears' "Ooops I Did It Again" faded out.

"I didn't play that!" she laughed, "I'm insulted!"

As the cockier one of the young guys missed his shot, the beginning strains of AC/DC's "Highway to Hell" began to play. With a smart smile, Lisa grabbed her stick and said, "That, I played."

XXXXX

Aaron Hotchner knew he should stop drinking. He wasn't trashed, although if he blew a breathalyzer, he would definitely lose his license. That didn't concern him though. There was a perfectly good Ramada Inn across the parking lot and if need be, he'd just book a room.

What did concern him was the way he was noticing details about Lisa that he'd never really cared about before. Sure, she was attractive, as she described herself, she was a "redhead with big boobs", but there was much more to her than that. On a physical note, he almost favored her long legs to the boobs, and he'd found her deep green eyes much more fascinating than her dark red hair. And although, she'd jokingly told him many times over the years that she was a "true redhead", he found himself wondering if she really was.

As he mentally reprimanded himself for thinking of his best friend like that, she leaned over to take her shot and the heel of her black pumps grazed his calf. His eyes travelled from the thin, black leather heel up to where her slender ankle disappeared beneath a pair of navy blue dress pants.

"Stop staring at my ass," she laughed, and then sank the 13 ball.

"And just how do you know I'm staring at your ass?"

"I can tell," she shot back, then to the young guys, "14 ball in the far left pocket." She sunk that one, and then surveyed the table.

Hotch stood and walked up behind her, looking over her shoulder. He stood close enough to smell the faint reminders of her perfume. He knew she wore L'air Du Temps, although how he knew, he couldn't remember. Pulling his attention from her perfume, he surveyed the table, then quietly, his lips near her ear, he spoke, "Slide around to the left of the table, lean over and bank it off the far side."

XXXXX

"You think?" she asked, trying to ignore the fact that his chest was pressing against her arm and that she wanted more of his body pressed against hers.

He nodded, stepping back, pulling away the delicious warmth of his body.

As AC/DC faded off and Guns and Roses faded in, she tried the shot he suggested and missed it. "Shit!" she spat.

"It's okay," he dismissed, picking up his beer and taking a drink. "We're still way ahead."

"Keep talking, Old Man," laughed the cocky young guy again, sinking the 3 ball.

Something about his tone grated on Lisa's nerves and as she opened her mouth to tell him so, she felt Hotch's hand on her shoulder.

"No bar room brawls tonight, Reds," he reminded.

"Damn, now I know you're as buzzed as I am," she laughed. "You haven't called me Reds in years!"

"Maybe I should do it more often," he smartly said, watching as Cocky Young Guy missed his shot. He smiled at her. "Now, watch this…" Bobbing his head in time to the music, he surveyed the table, then leaned over and effortlessly sunk the eight ball. Standing back up, he sang along with Axl Rose, "Whoa, oh, oh, oh, sweet child of mine…whoa, oh, oh, oh, sweet love of mine…"

Then, as she lifted her beer glass to her lips, he took it one step further and proceeded to play his pool cue as a guitar. Lisa dissolved into laughter, nearly spitting her beer out.

"Damn, you old folks are crazy," the quiet young guy said, slapping money into Hotch's outstretched hand.

"And don't you forget it," Hotch said, as the two young guys walked away. Counting the cash in his hand, he turned back to Lisa. "Why are you laughing?"

"Oh, I don't know, Axl," she said, laughing harder.

"Hey, I do a perfect Axl Rose…" he defended, holding out half the cash to her, "In my car, alone."

"I bet I do a better Axl Rose in the shower than you do in your car," she challenged, snatching the money from his hand, folding it, and tucking it in her bra. "Come on, next round is on me."

XXXXX

He followed her to the bar and was surprised to find two empty stools. As she sat down and threw a twenty on the bar, he sat next to her. The bartender approached.

"What can I get you folks?"

"Sam Adams draft and a Stella Artois draft," Hotch replied.

The bartender nodded, "You've still got five minutes on the midnight shot special."

"What's the shot?" Lisa asked, eyes twinkling as she leaned forward.

"Screaming orgasms," the bartender said, with a grin, his eyes taking in the healthy view of cleavage Lisa's position afforded him. "What do you say, Gorgeous? Can I give you a screaming orgasm?"

Lisa laughed a deep, throaty laugh. "Oh, I bet you could," she laughed, casting a glance over at Hotch, "But I'm not in any mood to dump my friend here."

The bartender cast him a glance, and then returned his eyes to Lisa. Something about the guy was seriously rubbing Hotch the wrong way.

The bartender continued, "I'm sure I could give you a better screaming orgasm than he could…"

Lisa turned to him and fixed him with a smile, "Oh, I don't know about that. Well, Hotch? What do you think?"

He looked at her, his mind scrambling for a quick come back, but finding none. _Damn alcohol! _

"Cat got your tongue?" she playfully asked. Her eyes were sparkling, her lips curled into a grin, her head was tilted and he realized that she was flirting with him. "The man seems to think he could provide me with a better screaming orgasm. What do you say to that?"

He laughed, tickled by her flirting and wondering if it was serious or if she was doing it to put off the bartender. His mind suddenly focused, he gave her a sly smile and said, "I say, bring it on."

XXXXX

Lisa laughed loudly. _Was he serious or was this all for the bartender's behalf?_ "Gee, should I hop up on the bar?"

"As much as I'd like that, Gorgeous, "the bartender laughed, "We'd all get tossed in jail. I'll abdicate to your friend here…and give you guys a couple of shots on the house."

"Thank you," she smiled, watching as he poured a dark creamy liquid into two shot glasses. "Why does this scare me?"

"What the hell's in this?" Hotch asked, as they picked up the shots.

"Creamy stuff?" she shrugged. "And brown stuff? Just drink it."

"Yes, ma'am," he returned, as they both downed their shots and set them on the bar. "That wasn't bad. I definitely tasted Kahlua."

"And amaretto," she agreed.

"Want another round?" the bartender asked.

Before Lisa could open her mouth, Hotch replied in the affirmative.

"Are you trying to get me drunk?" she laughed, watching as the bartender poured two more shots.

"Hell no," he dismissed, "I already did that. I'm trying to get you drunker."

She fixed him with a dubious look. "Drunker? Is that even a real word?"

"It is now," he decided, his face grave. "I have decreed it so."

Lisa rolled her eyes, "Oh, excuse me, Mr. Unit Chief. Is that part of your authority now?"

He grinned, "It's one of those duties to be assigned as necessary."

"I have a duty for you," she smartly returned, "Figuring out how we're getting home."

"We're not driving," he firmly said.

"I'm not taking a cab back to Woodbridge from here."

"No, we're walking across the parking lot and staying at the Ramada."

She raised a brow and held back a smile at the thought of what trouble they could get into over at the Ramada.

"Don't look at me like that," he dismissed with a laugh. "We're both to drunk to drive. I made up my mind while we were playing pool."

"Don't you just plan ahead," she laughed. "Well, then, what do you say we do another shot? The night is still young and we don't have far to go at closing time."

For the second time that night, he smiled and said, "Bring it on."


	2. Was that wild enough for you?

"_**The art of life lies in taking pleasures as they pass, and the keenest pleasures are not intellectual, nor are they always moral."**_

_**Aristippus**_

At some point, Aaron Hotchner gave up his self control and let the night take him where it would. This was not his usual style; he tended to want to be in control of every situation. He would have like to blame it on the alcohol, but he couldn't, not all of it.

"You're thinking again," Lisa O'Reilly's voice began. "You promised you wouldn't do that tonight."

"Sorry," he waved a hand, "No more thinking. Now, are we heading to the Ramada or what?"

"I'm ready," she said standing up. She looked at him with a smile, "Well, this is good. The room isn't spinning."

"That always helps," he agreed, as they walked out of the bar and into the parking lot.

The early May evening had taken a chilly turn and a fine rain had started to fall.

"Oh, yeah, driving home in this would suck," she said, as they walked across the parking lot.

He studied her, out of the corner of his eye. For as much as she'd had to drink, she was doing a good job of navigating the wet parking lot in her heels. As he opened his mouth to tell her this, her foot hit the metal edge of a storm grate and slipped. Had she been sober, she probably would have been able to correct her loss of balance and right herself with nothing more than a laugh and comment about her clumsiness. However, she wasn't sober and righting herself was a slow process, too slow to stop her motion towards the ground.

Surprised at his own fast thinking, he reached out to grab her and stop her fall, catching her before she went down.

"Shit," she laughed. "Thanks."

"Have another drink," he laughed, with her.

"Cheap way to grab my boobs, though," she teased, looking down at his left hand that had, some how, come to rest cupping her left breast.

Normally, he would have brushed this off with a quick apology and some awkward laughter, but tonight, then damn alcohol took over his tongue and, as he helped her to stand, he said, "Trust me, if I was grabbing your boobs on purpose, you'd know it."

She raised a brow, not sure what took her more by surprise, hearing Aaron Hotchner say the word "boobs" or the implications of the whole sentence. "So," she said, with a grin, "You're good at boob grabbing?"

He shrugged, as they continued walking, "I can hold my own." He was glad that she took his accidental hand placement in stride, but disturbed by his body's reaction to that simple contact. _Damn it, Hotchner, are you a 16 year old boy? _

"You're not supposed to hold your own," she cracked, "Besides, mine are probably more fun than yours."

"I'm not even going there," he laughed, as they walked into the hotel.

"Oh why not?" she continued, playfully taunting him. "Tell me you never thought about it."

"No," he shook his head, "Not going there. Not going to do it…"

"Come on…" she continued, green eyes twinkling with merriment as they approached the desk.

"Can I help you folks?" the cheerful young woman behind the counter began.

"Do you have a non smoking double available?" Hotch asked, reaching for his wallet.

"Chicken," Lisa replied, in a sing song manner.

"Yes, Sir," the clerk nodded, "We certainly do. I'll just need some information and a major credit card."

"I am not a chicken," he said, flipping open his wallet and producing a credit card, which he handed to the clerk.

"Mr. Hotchner, can you please fill out this guest card?" the clerk asked, sliding the card and a pen across the counter.

"Bak, bak, bak," Lisa went on, laughing.

"I'm trying to write here," he countered, as he filled out the card. His handwriting normally wasn't the best, but tonight it hit new levels of scrawl. Doing his best to print neatly, he ignored Lisa's playful taunting. Well, his mind did. His body was still experiencing the whole 16 year old boy thing.

"You're avoiding the question," she concluded, leaning over his shoulder, "And you spelled Hotchner wrong."

"I did?" he asked, eyes quickly scanning the card before he realized she was still teasing. "Watch it, O'Reilly…"

"Or what?"

He fixed her with an exasperated expression, and then slid the form and pen back to the clerk.

"Thank you, Mr. Hotchner, you're in room 416," she slid a key card to him. "Take that elevator to the fourth floor and go to your left. Would you like a complimentary personal care kit for the morning?"

"What's in it?"

"Toothbrush, tooth paste, mouth wash, the items that aren't normally in the room."

"That would work, thanks," he said, as she handed him two zip lock bags.

"There's a continental breakfast from 7 am until 10 am in the lobby. Have a great night," the clerk concluded.

"Thank you," he returned, then turned to Lisa and handed her a bag. "Here."

"Gee, Mr. Hotchner, you sure know how to treat a girl," she said, her voice taking on a breathy, mindless tone.

"I see Smart Ass Lisa has made her appearance for the evening," he teased, as they walked into the waiting elevator. "I'm starting to wonder if we should have had that last drink,"

"And I'm starting to wonder why you avoided my question in the lobby," she countered.

"What question would that be?"

"I asked you if you ever thought about it and your ears turned red and you avoided the question," she smiled. "Which tells me you did."

"Your profiling skills are getting rusty," he sniffed.

"Oh, really?" she laughed, "And that's why your ears turned red and your jaw twitched?"

"I'm drunk," he shrugged, wondering if he should have just told her that he had thought about it before, more than a couple of times.

"Okay," she shrugged, "If you say so. But I've thought about it."

His head snapped to look at her, "You have?"

She nodded, "Yup. I have. See, I've always wondered what you're like. I mean, you're so controlled and so authoritative at work, but when we get loaded, you relax and well, you're still pretty damned controlled and authoritative, but I see this wee bit of wild child show his face…"

He laughed at her description and decided to play along. "And you think that the wild child comes out when I hit the sheets?"

She smiled, "I think he could, depending on who you hit them with."

He nodded, digesting her comment. Was she coming on to him? Ignoring the warnings his rational mind was sending, he decided to throw out a little bait to see if she really was coming on to him.

With a sly smile, he said, "Another wild child, perhaps?"

She returned the smile, "Perhaps."

"You don't happen to know another wild child, do you?"

"Perhaps," she repeated, leaning towards him. "Why? Are you interested in proving my theory?"

"Depends on who the other wild child is," he responded. She was leaning close to him, so close that he could feel the heat radiating from her body. Her lips were mere inches from his and it wouldn't take much effort to simply lean forward and kiss her. But something held him back.

"Who do you think it is?" she asked, placing her hands on this chest and locking her eyes on his.

He knew his first mistake was allowing her to lock his eyes. His second mistake was recognizing the challenge those twin pieces of jade were issuing. But, his biggest mistake was taking that challenge and leaning in to kiss her.

There was no surprise in her reaction, not that he expected any. When she pulled back, she said, "Very controlled, very authoritative. But, I think you really need to do it again and this time, let the wild child out to play."

Without a word, he pulled her close and kissed her, revealing every bit of desire that he'd felt for her, tonight, and in the past. Pulling back, he said, "Wild enough for you?"

XXXXX

Lisa stood, breathless, still wrapped in his arms, willing her mind to function enough to speak. She barely noticed that as they kissed, the elevator doors opened and shut, leaving the car motionless at the fourth floor. At that moment, she wouldn't have really cared if the car went sideways. The only think she knew was that she had just kissed Aaron Hotchner and that if she had her way, there would be much more than a kiss before this night was over.

XXXXX

Aaron Hotchner was pretty damn proud of himself for leaving her not only breathless, but speechless as well. Lisa O'Reilly, who always had some sort of witty comeback, was standing there, mouth open, unable to speak.

Parroting her earlier line, he slyly said, "Cat got your tongue?"

Her mind slipping back into gear, she slipped her arms around his neck and said, "No, you did."

He laughed, "I'll ask you again. Was that wild enough for you?"

Lisa stroked the back of his neck with her neatly French manicured nails and when she spoke; her voice was more of a purr. "I think you can get much wilder than that."

"Is that a challenge?" he asked, lips barely brushing hers.

"Yeah," she said, capturing his lower lip with a light nibble. "It is." She replaced the nibble to his lips with a kiss, then pulled back and asked, "Think you're up for it?"

In a move that he would cringe over in the morning, he took her right hand from his chest and slipped it between them, bringing it to rest on his straining zipper. "Do you think I'm up for it?"

He watched her smile, as her hand caressed him through way too many layers of fabric for his liking.

"You've got two choices," she said, her raw voice betraying her arousal. "Either we get into that room ASAP or we're going to go at it right here."

Mindful of the security camera he shook his head. "No. Not here. Security can pay for their porn like everybody else."

Releasing her, he hit the 4th floor button. Once the doors opened, he took her hand and they quickly made their way to room 416.

Once inside, the door shut and locked behind them, they were on each other. Clothing was shed, quickly tossed aside without a care to its final resting place, as they worked their way to the closest of the two double beds. With his free hand, he cast aside the covers and they fell upon the bright white sheets.

Later, when they took the time to over-analyze the night, both of them were surprised by the fact that once they hit the room, neither of them had one moment of doubt nor one second thought as they lay together, exploring each others bodies, touching, teasing, driving each other further and further until their bodies were finally joined. All thoughts of teasing were replaced with a desperate urgency.

He wasn't sure if it was the night or her usual style, but Lisa was very vocal. The sounds she made had an intense effect on him. Having gotten used to having to be mindful of Jack sleeping in the next room, he found it refreshing and exciting to hear her soft moans and cries, her encouraging words and commands, and, on his behalf, to be able to rattle the headboard more than a bit.

When they finally reached their peak, collapsing together onto the pillows, they lay, holding each other, listening to the white noise of the heater. After a moment, Lisa spoke.

"Damn," she said, smiling at him.

"Yeah," he nodded, returning the smile. "Damn about sums it up."

"And that was when we were loaded," she laughed.

"That was 20 years in the making," he allowed.

"Yeah, it was," she agreed, kissing him softly. "And it was well worth the wait."

He held back a yawn.

"Tired you out, did I?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "You did." He kissed her softly, then smiled, "Just like I thought."

"Good thing we brought out that wild side of yours," she replied, holding back a yawn of her own. "Shit…I'm going to crash. Damn alcohol."

"I think we both need some sleep," he said, as she settled her head on his chest. He bent and kissed the top of her head.

"Yeah," she said, her eyes closing, "We do."

Feeling her body relax and her breathing slow, he closed his eyes, falling asleep instantly.


	3. The Start of Something Special

"_**Make it a rule of life never to regret and never to look back. Regret is an appalling waste of energy, you can't build on it it's only good for wallowing in."**_

_**Katherine Mansfield**_

Before he even opened his eyes, Aaron Hotchner knew he was hung over. He could feel the vicious dull throb behind his eyes that he knew would get worse when he exposed his retinas to light.

He drifted in and out of sleep, feeling Hayley stir in his arms and ran his hand along her side. As he did, alarm set in. Hayley didn't have hips like that. _Who the hell was he sleeping with?!_ Forcing his eyes open, he discovered that his bed mate was none other than Lisa O'Reilly.

She slept, her arm draped across his chest, her head on his shoulder, a soft smile on her face. A growing sense of dread enveloped him when he realized that beneath the blankets, they were both naked.

"Shit," he quietly said, causing her to stir.

Her eyes opened and after taking a moment to focus, she smiled. "So that wasn't a dream, huh?"

"No," he said, his tone short. "Not from the looks of it."

She rolled back on the pillows and stretched, causing the blanket to slip and reveal her naked breasts.

"Oh shit," he repeated, massaging his temples. "What did we do?"

Lisa laughed, "I know it's been a while, Hotch, but if I have to explain it…"

"That's not what I mean." He sat up, looking at her. Damn, she looked good laying there, her dark red hair all messy from sex, a dreamy smile on her face. It was her face that he kept his eyes trained on, trying desperately to avoid looking at her breasts.

She reached out and touched his arm, "Hey, relax."

"Relax?" he repeated, shaking his head, "Do you realize the implications of what we did last night?"

She sat up, "Yes, I know we had unprotected sex, but I've been tested, I'm on the pill, and you said you haven't been with anyone since Hayley…"

"That's not what I mean!" he repeated, trying to remain calm.

"Hotch; we had sex," she said quietly, "Amazing sex, but sex all the same. It's not like we plotted to overthrow the government or something."

"Exactly," he agreed, "We had sex."

XXXXX

Lisa studied him. He was clearly alarmed but she saw a great deal of guilt as well.

"Aaron," she softly said, calling him by his given name, something she very rarely did. "It's okay."

"No, it isn't. I was a drunken asshole last night," he said, "I'm sorry, Lisa. I never should have had that much to drink, let alone let you drink as much as you did."

"Stop," she went on, voice still soft. "You didn't get me drunk and take advantage of me. I hope you remember enough of the night to remember that at least."

"I remember all of it," he said.

"Then you remember that I pretty much instigated it."

A smile formed on his lips, but was quickly replaced by his omnipresent grimace. "That's beside the point. I took you out, got you drunk and had sex with you."

"Oh yes, and poor little naïve me had no idea what big bad Aaron Hotchner had in store for me when I left Quantico with him." Lisa rolled her eyes. "Get over it. We went out with the intention of getting drunk. I don't know when we both got it into our heads that we had to have sex, but somewhere along the line, we both made it our mission."

"You just don't screw your best friend of twenty years," he said, more to himself.

"Why not?" she countered. "Who better to have sex with than a friend?"

"And that's what we are now, friends with benefits?"

She thought for a moment, "I don't know. I didn't think that far."

"Yeah, me either," he agreed, relaxing slightly. "I thought about as far as getting into your pants and that's where I stopped thinking."

Lisa laughed. "Look, Hotch, it happened, we can't change that."

"I know," he agreed, lying back on the pillows.

She leaned over him. Looking down, she found him looking right back at her. "Look at me. Do I look any different this morning?"

He smiled. "You do."

Lisa raised a brow, surprised by his answer. "In what way?"

"You look relaxed, pleased, and absolutely beautiful," he decided.

It was Lisa's turn to laugh. "Beautiful? When's your next physical? You definitely need your eyes checked."

"I've got 20/20 vision, Lisa," he softly said, "And once my head stops pounding, I'll prove it to you."

"Poor baby," she playfully said, wanting to change the subject, if only for a while. Her head was pounding and although she knew they needed to discuss it, now was not the time. "If you play your cards right, I'll go down stairs and get you a huge bottle of water and some orange juice."

"How about some coffee?" he asked, hopefully, but she shook her head. "Don't even try it, O'Reilly. I know damn well you're going for coffee, don't deprive me."

Lisa was grateful to hear him sounding normal. "Let me grab a shower, then while you shower, I'll go get coffee, okay?"

XXXXX

A shower and coffee did wonders and by 10 am, Hotch almost felt human again. Lisa had also brought back bagels with cream cheese and some fresh fruit, which they ate sitting at the small table and chairs in the hotel room. While eating, they laughed about their adventures during the previous evening, steering clear of the evening's end.

Despite the morning's relaxed attitude, he still felt a strange feeling of loss, as if something had changed in their comfortable relationship. Watching her carefully, he knew she was feeling a bit of it herself.

"I guess we should head back to Quantico to get my car, huh?" she said, standing up and throwing away her Styrofoam coffee cup.

"We probably should," he agreed, then, before his brain could stop his mouth, he said, "Will you have dinner with me tonight?"

"Sure, where do you want to go?" she asked, clearly not getting his intent.

"La Papillion? I'll call for reservations when I get home…"

"La Papillion? Hotch, that's a bit out of our range, isn't it? I mean, come on, it's a great place to impress a date, but this is us…"

"This is us, going on a date," he seriously said, watching as a true smile formed on her lips.

"A date?"

He nodded. "I'm not a one night stand kinda guy," he explained.

"A date to an expensive restaurant," she clarified, "That _will_ change things, we'll be trying to impress each other and shit."

"Who says? Why can't you and I just go to a nice restaurant for dinner?"

"A nice, _romantic_ restaurant…"

"Well, if we're going to do the dating thing, I thought you might want romance," he shrugged. "I'd be fine with the Texas Roadhouse."

"Well, since we've already taken our relationship down Sex Avenue. I guess we owe it to ourselves to see if we want to try to do the normal dating thing to go with it. And I guess romance should have something to do with it, huh?" She grinned wickedly, "And maybe we can try the sex part again? Sober this time?"

"I'm not sure how much of the wild child's going to come out without the aid of alcohol, but I'll give it my best shot," he smiled, then, impulsively pulled her into his arms.

She wrapped her arms around him, leaning her head on his shoulder. Quietly, she said, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I'm not sure of anything these days, Lisa," he honestly said, "But I do know that last night I felt more alive than I have in months."

"That was just because you got laid," she gently teased.

"Partly, yes, but even before that," he held her back and looked at her, "Are you sure that you want to do this? Knowing me like you do…"

"We both know each other that well, there won't be too many surprises," she rationalized.

"Then I will pick you up for dinner at 7," he said, kissing her softly. "Now, let's go home."

_**Much as we may wish to make a new beginning, some part of us resists doing so as though we were making the first step toward disaster.**__**William Bridges **__**  
American Author**_

Many times during the hours leading up to their date, Aaron Hotchner questioned his sanity. Sure, he and Lisa had gone out, had way too much to drink and ended the night in bed. Sure, they enjoyed it and were still friends when they woke up. But, did either of them really want to change their relationship because of it?

His brain hurt, from the alcohol and thinking too much and he desperately wanted to take a nap when he got home. But no matter how much pain his brain was dealing with, it would not shot down long enough to allow sleep. Instead, he stretched out on the couch, absently watching the Orioles game and debating if he should just cancel the reservations at La Papillion and just take her to the Pub. They were familiar with the Pub; it was comfortable and relaxing and would make it easier to talk. On the other hand, even though she dismissed his guilt over last night, he still felt as if he needed to do something to make up for it. Getting up to take a shower, he decided to man up, put on a suit and take her to La Papillion.

When he arrived at her Woodbridge, VA condo, he wondered why in the hell he even thought of the Pub. She'd answered the door, dressed for dinner, in a black and white patterned silk dress that stopped above the knee and showed off just enough cleavage to be sexy, yet tasteful. She'd done her hair all full and curly and her make up was more dramatic than he could ever recall seeing. She looked incredible and he told her as he entered her apartment.

She blushed and told him he looked very handsome and that he was wearing her favorite charcoal grey pin striped suit. They stood awkwardly for a moment before she picked up her black cashmere wrap and her purse and suggested they head to the restaurant.

Once they were in the car, the awkwardness faded quickly and they talked and laughed like they usually did, carrying on a running conversation until they were seated at a candle lit table for two, holding large leather-bound menus.

"I think," Lisa began, looking at the menu, "That I'm finally hungry."

"Ah," he laughed, looking over the top of his menu, "Hangover stomach, aye?

She nodded, "I guess I wasn't drunk enough to get sick, though."

"We'll have to try harder next time," he simply said, returning his eyes to the menu as she laughed.

"Another drink and the night would have had a much less attractive outcome," she smartly said, peeking over her menu. "I would have been romancing the throne instead of you."

He looked up and shook his head, "Nice conversation we're having."

"I know, right? That's us, true class," she said with a laugh.

"Just figure out what you want to eat before they throw us out of here, okay?"

"Oooh, now wouldn't that make a great first date story?" she mused, closing her menu and setting it down on the table. She looked at him with an expectant smile.

Feeling her eyes on him, he looked up, "Can I help you?" he asked, trying not to smile at her expression.

"I'm ready to order," She smartly said, "Do you need some help reading the menu?"

"No, thank you, I can handle it," he returned, pulling his eyes from her and lifting the menu in front of his face. Safe behind the menu, he smiled. Things felt normal between them and that made him very happy. Closing the menu, he set it down and matched her stare, "See, I've decided."

"Took ya long enough," she returned in kind.

He fixed her with a faux pointed stare, "This _was_ supposed to be a romantic meal."

"Guess we need to learn how to do that, huh?" she said, head tilted in a flirty manner, "Be romantic with each other, I mean."

Even though it was said playfully, her statement stuck in his head. He was so concerned with things not changing that he forgot about trying to be romantic.

XXXXX

Lisa watched as his brows furrowed. Before she could say something about it, the waiter returned and took their order. Once he walked off, she spoke.

"I've been thinking," she began, watching as, despite his carefully controlled neutral expression, his jaw clenched. "Relax; it's not a bad thing."

"I am relaxed," he dismissed, "Go on. You were thinking?"

"Okay, if you say you're relaxed, you're relaxed," she laughed, then, "So, I was thinking. Why does our relationship have to change that much? I mean, why can't we be friends who are dating? Do we _have_ to try to be one of those mushy Harlequin Romance Novel couples?

"No," he agreed, "I just assumed you would want something different."

"Hotch; it's me we're talking about here. Remember me? Lisa O'Reilly? Red head, beer drinker? Smokes cigars and plays pool with the guys? Where in God's name would you get the idea that I wanted some guy to be all chivalrous and overly romantic?"

"Honestly? From watching you and Dave when you were together," he admitted, with a sheepish shrug of his shoulders.

She raised a brow and he continued.

"Come on, Lisa. You told me far more than you probably should have about that relationship."

"I did," she agreed, "But that doesn't mean I want to recreate it. Besides, you're not David Rossi."

His expression told her that he wasn't sure whether her last statement was a compliment or a dig at him.

"What I mean," she said, reaching across the table and taking his hand, "Is that you and I have a whole different relationship than Dave and I did before our affair. I fell for Dave when I joined the BAU. He was older, more experienced; he took me under his wing and taught me so much. I had one hell of a hero worship crush thing going. When we got together, I was perfectly content to let him be in control, let him lead the way. But you and I? We're friends, equals," she shrugged, hoping he understood. "I'm not saying that I won't appreciate romantic gestures. Trust me, I will. But I don't want you to force things or be anything but yourself."

He gave her a smile, "That's a relief. I was contemplating calling Dave for Casanova Lessons."

Lisa laughed at the image, and then thought about his statement. He was totally serious and it touched her deeply, "Aw… you would do that for me?"

His expression grew more serious, "If you really wanted that? I'd do my best to give it to you."

His earnest expression tugged at her heart and at that moment, she knew that this budding relationship wasn't just a figment of her imagination. "So," she softly said, "We're really going to do this relationship thing, huh?"

"I'd like to give it a try," he said, "I've felt differently about you for some time," he admitted. "But I tried to blow it off as backlash from my divorce. It's not."

"Do you think our friendship is strong enough to survive this?"

"We survived last night, didn't we? If we can survive a drunken hook up, we can survive anything."

"I'm hurt," she laughed, "A drunken hook up?"

"You know that's what it was," he gently reminded.

"No, that's what it started out as," she corrected, "But it ended up being the start of something special."


	4. The Alley

_**There are no secrets better kept than the secrets everybody guesses.**__**George Bernard Shaw **__**  
1856-1950, Irish-born British Dramatist**_

Lisa O'Reilly sat at the crowded bar, surrounded by many of her fellow FBI agents. In an all too infrequent happening, someone from Violent Crimes had arranged a take over of the Pub for a loud, rowdy, happy hour. Many of the Violent Crimes Unit were there, as were all of the BAU, and a good many of her people from CASMIRC. As usual, she hung between her group and the BAU. As usual, she sat between Hotch and Penelope Garcia. It was where she always ended up, between her two closest friends in the building.

This time, however, things were different. Of course, only she and Hotch knew just how different. They were still playing it cool, although, with each drink, Lisa found it harder and harder to pretend they were "just friends."

They'd agreed to keep things quiet at Quantico. Being in positions of power in separate units, they weren't in strict violation of the anti-fraternization rules, but there were people who envied their positions and neither of them wanted to give those people any ammunition against them. So, they played things as normal during the day, reserving the nights that their schedule allowed, to relax and "be a couple".

She'd been secretly thrilled by their ability to fall into "couplehood" when they left Quantico. Not that they were the "starry-eyed lovers" type, hanging on each other's every breath with moon-eyes and rapt attention. They maintained their normal relationship, spiced with a kiss, an embrace, or Lisa's personal favorite, the spontaneous hand holding as they walked together. It was just simple, automatic reaction that they'd quickly fallen into, a subtle possessive gesture that told the world that they were "together".

Hotch, for the most part, had relaxed and given up overanalyzing things and started to relax and let the relationship evolve and grow. Lisa smiled, knowing that she'd seen sides of him that no one in his tightly knit BAU had ever seen and that many of them doubted even existed.

"And what's that smile for, My Little Red Hot Dollar?" Penelope Garcia asked.

"You don't want to know," Lisa replied, vaguely.

"Oh, I don't know about that," Garcia laughed. "That was quite a Cheshire Cat look. I think I want to know it all."

"Nothing to see here," Lisa laughed. "Move along."

"I'm buying you another drink," Garcia decided, flagging the bartender, "I'll pry that secret out of you with alcohol."

"Help me, Hotch," Lisa said, grabbing his arm. "Pen's trying to get me drunk."

"Garcia," Hotch said, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips, "You do know what this woman is like when she's drunk, don't you?"

"Yes sir," she replied with a broad smile, "She's fun."

Exchanging a quick look with Lisa, he said, "And just who do you think's going to pour her home?"

"Well, Sir, you are the most sober person here…" Garcia decided.

"There you go, Hotch," Lisa laughed, "You can pour me home."

"Wouldn't be the first time," he shrugged.

"Lisa, do you mean to tell me you're still making Hotch pour your drunken ass home?" Rossi teased from Hotch's left.

"It's a hard job, but he's so good at it," Lisa laughed.

"That's dedication," Rossi agreed, holding up his glass in mock toast.

"Come on, Lisa," Garcia said, "I only bought you a little shot."

Hotch rolled his eyes, "She's going down…"

Quietly, so only he could hear, Lisa said, "Maybe, if you play your cards right…" Then turned to Garcia, "What am I drinking, Pen?"

"Sex on the beach," she announced.

"Oh, I've had that before," Lisa replied, causing the group to laugh loudly. "Very funny…"

"Now," Garcia said, with an evil grin. "We're going to do this shot, and then we're going to sing karaoke."

"Um…no." Lisa shook her head.

"Come on, Lisa," Jennifer Jareau laughed, standing near Rossi, "You keep getting out of it at every happy hour."

"Oh, another country heard from over there," Lisa sniffed, with a playful twinkle in her eye. "When was the last time you got up there, JJ?"

"Two happy hours ago," she reported, "They made me sing Hopelessly Devoted To You, in case you don't remember."

"Oh yeah, I remember that now," Lisa nodded, "How'd we ever start letting Pen pick the songs for us?"

"That was my fault," Emily Prentiss offered, stepping up behind Garcia. "I couldn't pick…so Pen took it upon herself to pick for me."

"And after that, you all just gave in to the Goddess of Knowledge," Garcia smartly said. "Come on, Lisa, drink up then you'll be singing."

Rolling her eyes, Lisa downed the shot and set the empty glass on the bar. "Okay, what song have you picked for me?"

"You'll see when you get up there," Garcia grinned, as the DJ called Lisa up to the karaoke machine.

Lisa turned to Hotch, "You may have to help me hide her body when this is over."

Hotch nodded, "Of course."

"Good," she agreed, then walked up to the machine and picked up the microphone. She looked at the DJ and asked, "Okay, what did she pick?"

"The Devinyls' _I Touch Myself_," the DJ leered, "She said you'd do a really good job with it."

As the music began to play, Lisa lifted the mike and said, "I'm going to get you for this, Pen…"

XXXXX

"The Devinyls?" Reid laughed, watching as Morgan sat in Lisa's vacant seat. "You're playing with fire, Garcia."

"I don't know," Morgan smiled, "I think Lisa can handle this one. Good choice, Mama."

"Thank you, My Chocolate God," she returned.

"I think," Rossi smartly said, "She's going to come gunning for you."

"I think she's enjoying it," JJ mused, watching as Lisa started to relax and play off of the reaction of the crowd.

Had this scene taken place a couple of months ago, Hotch may have chimed in with a smart comment, but not now, not tonight. Tonight, he sat, trying to appear amused by her sexy singing. She had, somewhere during the first chorus, turned her attention to their little group and played off of Morgan and Rossi's cat calls and the encouragement of the rest of the group.

She did her best to avoid his gaze any more than she normally would, until she reached the third verse. As she started to sing, she fixed him with a sexy gaze that the group picked up on and thought was done jokingly. He knew better and willed himself to remain casual, laughing, totally unaffected by her words as she sang.

"I close my eyes and see you before me. Think I would die if you were to ignore me. A fool could see just how much I adore you. I get down on my knees I do anything for you."

"Man," Morgan said, shaking his head. "She's doing a damn fine job with that song!"

"She's actually keeping up with the pace of the original recording fairly well," Reid said, "Her pitch is a bit off, but that's only because she's more of an alto…"

"Reid," Morgan said, holding up his hand, "Don't kill the mood, Man."

Rossi leaned in and in a voice that only Hotch could hear said, "Still trying to pretend she's only a friend?"

With a controlled motion and a smart smile, Hotch turned to his friend and in an equally quiet voice said, "Well, Dave, I don't think there's anything more to our relationship than there is to the one between you and JJ."

Hotch watched as surprise flickered on his friend's face for a brief moment before the older man chuckled. "Touché."

Hotch smiled, then turned his attention back to see Lisa finish the song to a round of applause.

XXXXX

As she walked over to the group, Lisa blushed at their applause. "Oh, stop!"

"You were amazing, Little Red Riding Hood!" Garcia grinned, embracing her friend. "Still want to kill me?"

"I should," Lisa deadpanned, then with a grin, "But then who else would go to El Taco Grande with me on two for one Burrito night?"

"Not me," Morgan grimaced, "That's for damn sure."

"You don't know what you're missing," Garcia slyly said, "Hot spicy meat, gooey melting cheese, all wrapped tightly in a supple tortilla shell…"

"Garcia are you going to eat that or make love to it?" Hotch asked, causing Garcia to laugh.

Lisa laughed along, allowing her eyes to connect to his for a brief moment. Despite his calm exterior, his eyes revealed the effect of her campy performance.

"And you," Hotch went on, fixing her with a stern look, "I'm sure there were a few morality rules that were broken with that song."

"You're not the boss of me," she retorted, "And besides, I'm off duty."

"There are witnesses to your behavior," he went on, twinkling eyes betraying the stern look.

"I didn't see anything," Morgan returned with a shrug, "What about you, Reid?"

"Me? Was there something going on?" Reid echoed.

"Fine, I see how it is, take her side," Hotch groused, "I'll remember that during performance appraisals."

"And on that note," Garcia laughed, "Who wants to go dance?"

"Me!" Prentiss grinned, setting down her drink, "Because if I don't start moving, I'm going to drink entirely too much and the last time I did that, I woke up in a villa on the Seine…"

"You poor thing," Lisa laughed.

"Come on, Lisa," Garcia said, "Come with."

Lisa shook her head, "Nope, I had my 15 minutes of fame. I think I'm going to hit the bathroom."

"I'll walk with you," Hotch offered, casually.

"We'll be on the dance floor!" Garcia said, waving as they walked away.

Lisa led him across the dance floor and back towards the bathrooms, but instead of going into the women's room, Lisa continued out the back door into the alley. It was a quiet little space behind the bar, where you could cool off and actually hear yourself think. Many nights they'd gone out there to talk each other through difficult cases or difficult moments in life. Tonight, however, they had other ideas.

Once the door was shut behind them, they retreated around the corner of the building. Seeing that they were alone, he pulled her into his arms. "Do you have any idea how hard it was to act aloof while you were up there moaning?"

She flashed him a wicked grin, "And how hard was it?"

"If we wouldn't get arrested, I'd show you," he countered.

"Where's your sense of adventure?" she returned, slipping her hand behind his head and pulling his lips to hers.

He kissed her hard and full. "You know you're a tease don't you?"

"And I know you like it," she countered, kissing him.

"We need to leave soon," he returned, with another kiss, backing her against the wall of the building.

Leaning against the cool bricks, she allowed him to press her to the wall. Despite the clothing between them, she could feel the heat of his body; feel him hard and insistent against her thigh. She reveled in the feelings he was creating. "I see the wild child's on his way out."

"You bring it out of me," he said, sliding his hand along her leg, under the hem of her knee length skirt, as he kissed her again.

The warm spring night, the alcohol, and the sheer thrill of his urgency was pulling all rational thoughts from her head. "We need to stop this…" she sighed. As he descended on her neck, a soft moan escaped her lips.

"Just give me another five minutes," he replied, his voice muffled by her neck.

She replied with a throaty laugh, "Five minutes, huh?"

He pulled up so that the were face to face, "Five minutes," he said, then descended on her lips with a fierce kiss, erasing all thoughts of protest from her mind.

She had to admit there was something oddly exciting about being out in an alley, making out like a couple of horny teenagers. She knew all too well that if their relationship were to grow and progress that moments like this would come less frequently, if at all. With that stark realization fresh in her mind, she made up her mind to relax and enjoy this.

As she responded to his kisses with more passion, she became aware that the back door to the Pub had opened and shut. There were other people in the alley; she could hear two different sets of feet shuffling around and the sounds of kissing.

_So, _she thought, _we're not the only horny teenagers in the bar!_

As she turned her full attention back to the very talented lips of her best friend, the alley's other occupants began to speak.

"Relax, Cara Mia, No one's going to see us out here," a very familiar male voice began, causing Lisa's blood to freeze. "I promise…"

It was David Rossi. And quite obviously, he was with someone else from the Bureau. Someone who didn't want to be seen with the older, more experienced agent, someone who obviously was still on their way up the ladder. Someone, like she was years ago.

She'd really thought she'd put it all behind her and was actually working on a friendship with the man. She could laugh and joke with him and even allude to their past in a playful manner. Yet, hearing those words, the same words he'd said to her, opened up a wound she thought long healed. Hell, he even called her the same damn name!

"Lisa," Hotch's voice asked, his voice barely a whisper. "What's wrong?"

She opened her eyes to find his concerned eyes looking back at her.

"Listen," she quietly said.

XXXXX

Hotch grew quiet and was rewarded by the sound of voices.

"Someone is around the corner!" began a female voice that he instantly recognized as JJ's.

"Who the hell?" the voice of David Rossi returned.

As he opened his mouth to speak, Rossi, followed by an obviously upset JJ turned the corner.

"Hotch?" Rossi laughed.

"Dave," Hotch returned, with a nod, watching as Rossi's eyes danced with merriment.

"So, you know about the alley, too."

Hotch nodded as he and Lisa stepped apart. "It's an urban legend." Then, with a smile, he said, "Hello, JJ."

"Hotch…I…" she began, stammering, "This isn't what it looks like…"

"Isn't it?" Rossi laughed.

"No…I…" JJ went on.

"JJ, relax," Hotch softly said.

"But…I'm…you saw…"

"I heard," he corrected, with a reassuring smile. "And if you noticed, I wasn't exactly out here star gazing."

"You're awfully calm about this, Lisa," Rossi said, with a laugh.

Hotch took a look at her, deciding that either the shadow cast by the building was obscuring Lisa's eyes from Rossi's line of vision or his old friend had forgotten a lot about his former lover. Although she wore a smile, her eyes told a much different story.

"We've got a Mexican Standoff, Dave," she laughed. "We all got caught with our hands in the cookie jar."

"Oh, I don't know," Rossi teased, "I hadn't gotten the lid off the cookie jar, yet. Hotch on the other hand…"

His words drew a swat from JJ, a gesture that told Hotch a lot about their relationship. Quite obviously, it had been going on for some time. JJ felt comfortable, secure, and relaxed enough to do such a thing and Rossi laughed it off. Only a couple with some mileage beneath their belts would react this way. _How long had this been going on right under his nose? _

XXXXX

Lisa forced out a laugh, wondering why Dave's reaction was bothering her so much. So what if he was hooked up with JJ? That was their business. She was happy with Hotch and content to work at turning their long time friendship into the love affair it was becoming. _But why_, she wondered, _is this bothering me so damn much?_

"I will resist the urge to make a cookie related comment," Hotch said, JJ's presence driving him back into a milder version of his "work persona".

"So, do you think anyone misses us yet?" Rossi asked, clearly finding this whole episode highly amusing.

His question sent JJ further into a spin and Lisa watched as the petite blonde's blue eyes grew wide.

"Relax," Lisa said, straightening her skirt. "JJ, you and I will walk inside and go right to the bathroom, where we will be cleaning the spilled drink off of my skirt." She fixed her eyes on Rossi, "Do you still carry those terribly illegal Cohiba's in your pocket."

Rossi smiled, "Of course I do, why?"

"Light one…both of you take a few drags and wallow in the smoke…" she instructed. "You guys came out to smoke a cigar…"

"And what about us?" JJ asked.

"Very simple…come with me," she dismissed. She then turned and looked at Hotch with a smile. "And no, you can't talk me back into joining the BAU," she smartly returned then, "Oh, and wipe my lipstick off before you go in, okay?"

With that, she turned and made her way back into the building.

"I'll get you for this, Dave," JJ returned through tight lips, then followed Lisa into the building.

XXXXX

Once the woman had gone back inside, leaving them alone, Rossi let go a laugh. Thinking about the situation, Hotch had to let loose with one of his own.

"Well," he began, looking at the older man, "That confirmed both of our suspicions."

"And totally freaked out poor Jennifer," he agreed, sobering.

"I'm not sure how Lisa reacted to that one," Hotch admitted, wiping her lipstick off of his lips with a handkerchief.

"Like the professional she is," Rossi said, a touch of pride in his voice. "She's always been very good at covering her tracks."

"Yeah," Hotch nodded, not sure how to reply. Part of him was irritated by his friend's casual reference to the affair he'd had with Lisa, knowing the effect it had on her. The other part agreed with him. She did step up and take control of the situation, a trait he'd admired in her from the beginning. She was always able to remain calm and come up with a plan.

Rossi reached into his jacket pocket and produced a cigar, which he lit. "Come on, let's smoke this thing so we can get out of this alley and back inside to the women."

"I'm with you," Hotch agreed, taking a drag of the cigar and handing it back to Rossi. He wanted to get back to Lisa. He could tell that this event had upset her, but he wasn't quite sure why it had upset her that badly. Taking another drag of the cigar Rossi held out to him, he made his mind up to get her home as soon as he could and get to the bottom of it.


	5. This Is About You And Me

**Author's Note: Many thanks, as always to Tonnie, Snoozie, and ilovetvalot - without them, I'd be spending my nights staring at a blank document and beating my head against the desk. **

"_**The quarrels of lovers are like summer showers that leave the country more verdant and beautiful"**_

_**Susanne Curchod Necker**_

Getting out of the Pub was surprisingly easy. Everyone, having had more than enough to drink, believed that Hotch and Rossi had stopped to share a cigar and, thanks to a carefully created wet splotch on Lisa's skirt, that Lisa and JJ were in the bathroom, trying to prevent the drink that some drunken idiot had spilled on Lisa's skirt as she walked through the bar.

Declaring that she wanted to leave and get stain remover on the skirt, Lisa found her way to exit. Garcia had unwittingly helped their case by insisting that Lisa leave her car at the bar and have someone drive her home. Garcia went on, electing Hotch, who had consumed the least amount of alcohol out of the group.

This pleased Hotch immensely, although he pretended to accept the position with a mild bit of reluctance. Once they hit the car, the act was dropped and he made a mental note to thank Garcia. He didn't know if Rossi and JJ had managed to extricate themselves as well, but at that point, he didn't really care.

Lisa was surprisingly affectionate during the ride home, almost too much so, given her reaction to finding JJ and Rossi in the alley. She leaned across the center console of his car, nuzzling his neck as he drove them back to her condo in Woodbridge.

"What are you doing?" he laughed, as she kissed her way along his neck up to the spot behind his ear.

"Getting us back to where we were," she said, gently biting his ear lobe, an act she discovered, many years ago, quite by accident, had a very strong effect on him. She'd remembered it and had used frequently since they'd been together.

"Are you trying to make me drive off the road?" he asked.

"I guess it's working, huh?"

"Lisa," he said, "You're not making this easy…"

"The goal is to make it hard," she softly laughed.

Stopping the car at a red light, he took his hands from the steering wheel and placed them on her shoulders, holding her back slightly. He kissed her deeply, and then pulled back.

"You need to let me drive, okay?" he asked, his tone gentle yet letting her know there was no room for debate. "I've had just enough to drink that if we get pulled over, it won't be pretty. I promise you, I am very aroused right now and I will not lose that in the five minutes it will take us to get to your place, " he kissed her again, then, catching the changing of the light out of the corner of his eye, returned his hands to the steering wheel and his attention to the road.

Satisfied, she sat back in her seat, covering his hand with her own on the shifter. As he drove the rest of the way to her place, he thought about the redhead sitting in his passenger seat. She'd instigated this new version of their relationship, although, he firmly believed that at the time, she had no idea that they'd both warm to it like they had.

She'd brought out of him a side he'd long abandoned. She called it the "Wild Child" and in many ways, she was right. But it was nothing new. It was the way he was in high school and college and yes, even for a while after that, but definitely before he began the tug of war between his life and his job. There was no time to kick back and enjoy, there was no time to do anything but be the best he could be at work, then go home and try to be the perfect husband and father. It drained him, drained the marriage, and effectively killed the Wild Child in him.

It felt good to laugh and relax. The new aspect of their relationship was light and sexy and was a tonic to his soul. And then, there was the sex. In the two weeks since they'd spent their first night together, Hotch thought he'd had more sex than in the last year of his marriage. He was no fool, however. He knew that if this relationship was to continue things would slow down. They'd have to or he'd have a stroke before he hit 50.

Parking in her marked visitor space, he killed the engine and turned to her. "We're here."

"Still aroused?" she asked, with a twinkle in her eye.

He leaned forward and kissed her, "Let's go upstairs and I'll show you just how aroused I am."

XXXXX

He didn't lie about being aroused, a fact that he proved to her the moment they'd walked back into her bedroom. Despite the feeling of unease that had settled upon her since their meeting with JJ and Rossi in the alley, she'd managed to relax enough to finish the mating dance they'd started back at the Pub.

Afterwards, they lay next to each other, hands held between them, in silence. Her body felt relaxed and comfortable, but her mind, now cleared of the desire that had been fogging it, was racing. What if Dave was using JJ the way he used her? Not that she didn't play her part in their relationship, just as JJ was probably doing now, but if JJ was investing her heart in this…well, Lisa didn't want to see her friend get hurt.

"Lisa," Hotch's voice began. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, why?" she lied.

"If you squeeze my hand any harder, I'm going to lose circulation in my fingers," he gently said, rolling towards her onto his side. He placed his hand on her stomach. "Talk to me."

Turning her head towards him, she spoke. "How long have you known that Dave and JJ were seeing each other?"

"I didn't know," he said, "I suspected."

"And you didn't mention it to me?"

"I didn't think to bring it up," he shrugged.

She nodded. "Come to think of it, he didn't seem too surprised to find us out in the alley, either."

"I'm surprised he didn't figure it out sooner," Hotch admitted, "He's known us longer than anyone in the Bureau. If anyone was going to figure it out, it would be him."

"Have you talked to him about his…relationship?"

"No, I told you, I suspected it, but it wasn't confirmed until tonight. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, I don't know, why do you think?" she snapped, sitting up. "Maybe because he's having a relationship with JJ?"

XXXXX

Hotch sat up to equal the playing field. He knew she was working towards a point and that he was probably going to receive her wrath when she reached it. It had happened many nights before, but not since their relationship had taken its new twist.

"And where would that be any of our business?" he asked, knowing, as he said it, that he'd shortened the distance to wrath detonation.

"Do you have a short memory?" she asked, her voice rising, just a bit. "Think back about 13 years to another young agent with a bright future and a certain David Rossi…"

"Lisa," he said, trying to reason with her. "You can't compare it to your relationship."

"Why can't I? There are many similarities, Hotch. The least of which was he even called her Cara Mia…that's what he used to call me."

And that was it, Hotch decided. That was the cause of this whole melt down and he was going to call her on it. "And that's what's got you so worked up, isn't it?"

"You don't get it, do you?" she tiredly said.

His rational mind knew he should let this go and try to salvage the evening. But the rest of him knew that back when they were "just friends", he would have pushed this to the end, playing Devil's Advocate to get to the root of the issue. He'd made her a promise, that night in La Pavilion, that he would never allow romance to get in the way of their friendship and he wasn't going to go back on that promise. "I get it, Lisa. I get it better than you think I do."

"And just what is that supposed to mean?" she snapped.

"Just answer this question for me," he went on, his voice taking on the tone reserved for interviewing apprehended unsubs. "What has you more upset? The thought of Dave hurting JJ or the fact that he called her by his pet name for you?"

"You son of a bitch!" she hissed. "How can you say that?"

"Have you forgotten who you're talking to?" he reminded, careful to keep his tone even.

"So you think you know me that well, huh?" she shot back, anger flaring.

"Yes, I do," was his comeback. He should have thought of something better, but found himself watching as her eyes narrowed and color flared in her cheeks.

"It doesn't matter to me what the hell he calls her," she returned, "He could call her by my freaking name and I wouldn't care. Why the hell would you think it made any difference to me?"

"You brought it up, remember?" he simply said.

"Jesus Christ, Hotch," she replied, exasperated. "I brought it up as an example of why I thought he was repeating history."

Having had quite enough of this discussion, he through in the coup de grace. "You said it because you're still in love with him."

"What?"

"You heard me," he calmly said. "You said it because you're still in love with him."

"Isn't this a case of the pot calling the kettle black?" she sniffed. "You telling me I'm still in love with Dave, when you're still totally hung up on Hayley."

"I'm still what?" he asked, her words taking him off guard.

"You're still in love with Hayley, admit it Hotch," she challenged.

"I am not still in love with Hayley," he insisted, biting back the rest of his answer.

"Have you forgotten who you're talking to?" she smartly said, parroting his earlier response. Then, in a tone that nearly matched his, she said. "You are still in love with her."

"No, I'm not," he continued, "Because I'm in love with you."

He watched as confusion took over her features, but just for a moment.

"What did you just say?"

"I said, I'm in love with you," he repeated, a bit more sure of himself.

XXXXX

Lisa looked at him. The man who had been her best friend, drinking buddy, and confidant for the past 20 years was telling her that he loved her. No, strike that, he was telling her that he was _in love with her_ – and he actually knew the difference.

"You're in love with me?" she asked, needing to have him confirm his declaration, so that her brain would believe what her ears thought they heard.

He nodded. "I know, it's kinda hard to believe," he admitted. "But I am. I realized it tonight, out in the alley."

She laughed softly, "That was lust, Honey."

He allowed a laugh of his own, "Not then, later, when Dave and I were smoking that cigar and talking."

"You're going to have to explain how smoking with Dave brought you to this realization."

"He was talking about you, with this air of familiarity and I found myself getting pissed off that he would actually be talking about you like that to me."

"Getting possessive, are we?" she gently teased.

"Maybe I am," he shrugged. "I don't know. He didn't say anything insulting or offensive, but his tone got under my skin."

"You've always been…protective of me, Hotch," she reasoned. "It's one of the things I've loved about you."

He shook his head, "This was more intense." He laughed. "In the "don't talk about my woman like that" vein."

On some level, she thought that his possessive attitude should piss her off, but it didn't. It tickled her and she found herself smiling at him. "Did you really mean it when you said that you're in love with me?"

"You know me, Lisa. I don't lie."

She nodded, processing the information. He had never lied to her, so she knew he was sincere in that declaration, but she was his first relationship after his divorce. Was he really in love with her or was this just a rebound?

"You're questioning my sincerity," he knowingly said.

She shook her head, "No, I know you're sincere."

"Then what is it? Quite obviously you doubt something in the fact that I am in love with you."

She thought for a moment before speaking. She didn't want to hurt him, but needed to make sure that this really wasn't a rebound romance before she invested what was left of her heart.

"I'm the first…after your divorce," she began.

"And you think this is a rebound," he nodded, understanding her rationale. He took her hands in his and spoke quietly. "If we'd just met, I would be questioning this myself. But that's not what's happening here."

She could tell that he was trying to sort through his feelings and sensed that he had more to say, so she remained silent waiting for him to continue.

"I asked Dave how he figured us out," he explained, "I thought we were doing a damn good job keeping this under wraps. And he told me that he could see something different about us in the past couple of weeks. I tried to play dumb but he called my bluff and told me that a part of me has been in love with you for years, even back when he was with you, he knew about it."

"Okay…" she said, waiting for him to continue.

"I guess that hit home, because Hayley said the same thing to me after we'd broken up."

"Damn," she said, mulling over that thought. "You never told me that."

He laughed, "Of course I didn't. You already wanted to kill her."

She narrowed her eyes, "I'd still love just five minutes alone with her."

"Lisa…"

"Sorry, but she…"

"This isn't about Hayley," he softly said, "Or Dave. This is about you and me."

"I know," she said, caressing his cheek, "I do love you, Hotch. I've loved you for years. You've been my rock, my crying shoulder, my drinking buddy, my partner in crime. Hell, I've seen sides of you that most people don't know existed. The past two weeks have made me look at you in a whole new light and you know what? I think tonight has made me realize that I'm in love with you too."

He leaned forward and kissed her softly. "I'm glad you said that. I didn't want to be the only one taking it to that level."

"I'm not going to lie to you," she said, trying to temper her words, "I'm scared."

He smiled at her, "You too?"

Lisa nodded, "We've been so close for so long. You've been the one I ran to when I had problems. Who am I going to go to now?"

"You can still come to me," he said. "Why would you think that would change?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "I mean, we just had fought with each other. I didn't know if I could."

"We fought," he shrugged. "These things happen."

"Yeah, but should we be doing that this soon?"

"I don't know, but we did," he shrugged. "I wasn't aware that there were guidelines for when arguments were supposed to happen."

"There aren't," she returned, "But, we've only been seeing each other for two weeks."

"But we've been friends for twenty years," he countered, "We've argued before. I seem to remember a few times that you slammed your office door in my face."

Lisa allowed a smile. "And then there was the day that you hung up on me."

"Exactly,' he agreed. "And our friendship survived, didn't it?"

"It did," she said, then, "But this is a huge step. If this doesn't work, there will be more issues to deal with than slammed doors and hang ups. I really want to give this a try and see where it goes, but I don't want to lose you as a friend."

"Lisa," he said, holding her hands again, "I can't promise you that this is going to work. I can only promise you that I will do everything in my power not to hurt you."

"That's all I can ask," she said, with a smile. "And you know, I promise you the same."

"That goes without say," he winked.

"Well, tonight's been an eventful night," Lisa mused. "We've had our relationship discovered, we've had our first fight as a couple, and we've both admitted we're in love. Aaron Hotchner, what do we do now?" she asked mimicking the popular Disney World commercial.

"Go to Disney World?" he tried, causing her to laugh.

She leaned forward and kissed him, "And that," she began, "Is one of the many reasons I love you. You get my dumb pop culture references. But seriously, what should we do now?"

"You," he began, taking her by the shoulders and pushing her back onto the pillows, "Are the one who keeps telling me to stop thinking too much." He leaned over her.

"Yeah," she smiled, looking up at him to find desire returning to his eyes. "I am."

"And what are you doing?" he continued, kissing her.

"Thinking too much," she replied, placing her hands on his chest. "So, think you can do something to take my mind off of things?"

He gave her a truly evil smile, "I'm sure I could think of something."


	6. The One Relationship That Truly Mattered

_**What ever is the natural propensity of a person is hard to overcome. If a dog were made a king, he would still gnaw at his shoes laces.**__**Hitopadesa **__**  
600?-1100? AD, Sanskrit Fable From Panchatantra**_

After a lazy Saturday morning spent drinking coffee in bed, Lisa reluctantly talked them both into showering and dressing, then riding out to Quantico to pick up her car.

Jack's first t-ball game was at 2, so Hotch was going to head up to Arlington for the game. He invited Lisa, but she thought it might be too soon for Jack to know about their new relationship. He argued that she'd been to many of Jacks' functions before and that he knew and loved his "Aunt Lisa", but she held firm on her decision, afraid that one of them would slip and do or say something that would get back to Hayley. She wasn't ready for that to happen just yet.

They agreed to get together that night and to get some dinner and maybe catch a movie, and then with a long kiss filled with all sorts of promises, she sent him on his way to Arlington.

After he drove off, she decided to head into the office for a bit, to finish a few reports that would be more easily completed on a quiet Saturday. As she parked her car in her normal spot, she noticed Dave Rossi's car parked next to hers. She wondered, momentarily, if he'd really come in, or if he had just left his car and gone home with JJ.

Even after her discussion and subsequent argument with Hotch last night, that relationship still stuck in her craw. Hotch believed that there was merit to this relationship, cautioning her that she shouldn't jump to conclusions. She tried to follow his logic, really she did, but her gut told her that Dave's plans were more nefarious.

She walked into the building and up to her office. For half an hour, she attempted to review the report in front of her, but her focus was elsewhere. Gazing out the window, she saw that Rossi's car was still parked next to hers.

"He's probably at JJ's," she said aloud, then returned her eyes to the folder on her desk. Her eyes swam over the text, frustrating her. "Good God, O'Reilly. Get over this!" She closed the folder and stood up, knowing exactly what she needed to do to get over it.

With a proper head of steam, she walked through the nearly empty CASMIRC bull pen and out into the hallway. Sure, if he wasn't in his office, she would have wasted a perfectly good head of steam, but sitting at her desk would only work her into a lather again and she would not subject her burgeoning relationship to another tirade over David Rossi.

Walking into the BAU bull pen, she looked up and smiled. The light was on in Rossi's office. Good. Continuing with a purposeful stride, she walked up the stairs and stopped in his doorway.

Hearing her, he looked up from his desk with a smile, "So, I'm not the only one catching up on paperwork, am I?"

"No, I thought I'd come in and get some stuff done this morning," she shrugged, walking into the office.

Rossi closed the file on his desk and looked at her, "I know that look. What's up, Lisa?"

"We need to chat," she said, sitting down on one of the chairs in front of his desk.

With a chuckle he said, "Have a seat."

"Thanks," she nodded.

"Look, if you think I'm going to say anything about you and Hotch, don't worry. I think it's great that you two are together…" he began, but she cut him off.

"That's not why I'm here."

Clearly curious, he responded with an, "Okay?"

"How long have you and JJ been seeing each other?" she asked, deciding to jump right in.

He nodded, "I get it. This is where you read me the riot act, right?"

"Dave, you're a grown man and JJ's a grown woman. It's truly none of my damn business what you do…"

"You're right, it isn't," he replied, no malice in his tone.

"But, JJ is my friend," she went on, on a roll and with no intention of stopping until she had said everything she'd come to say. "I don't want to see her hurt."

"Lisa, I assure you…"

"You assured me, too, Dave," she said.

"This is different," was his firm reply.

"Is that why you called her Cara Mia?" she asked, a bit more harshly than she'd wanted.

"It's a term of endearment, Lisa," he gently said. "And yes, I know, I did use that name with you, as well. But, if you remember, it was not the only name I called you."

Memories of a happier time with the legendary profiler assaulted her system and she found herself with a sad smile. Obviously, he'd seen the smile as well.

"I assure you, Lisa, I do not use those names for Jennifer," he concluded.

"And what about the relationship? What are your intentions with her Dave? She's my friend and I will stand up for her, if need be."

"I assure you, Little Girl, I have only the best intentions where Jennifer is concerned."

"I've heard that one, too, Dave," she flatly said. "I'm not convinced."

XXXXX

David Rossi studied the redhead sitting across from him. She'd always had the ability to hold her own, but damn, she'd gotten stronger. She wasn't going to let go of this until he convinced her that he truly loved Jennifer.

He wondered, momentarily, if Hotch knew just what he was getting himself into.

"So, Dave," she said, folding her arms across her chest. "You still haven't told me. What are your intentions?"

"You're probably not going to enjoy listening to this," he prefaced, deciding that there really was no way to satisfy her without hurting her on some level.

"I'm a big girl, I can handle it."

"Okay, here goes," he said, his tone even, "I am in love with her, Lisa. I don't think I've ever truly been in love with a woman before, because this is something different. It did not start out as a one night stand or a drunken hook up. I courted her and finally, she too pity on me. Hell, it took me a full month just to convince her to have dinner with me."

Lisa's pose didn't change, but he saw a crack in her hardened façade and continued. "And not that it's any of your business, but it took me a damn sight longer to convince her to take our relationship to a more intimate level. We've been dating since February and I will tell you right here and right now that I have found the only woman that I will ever need." He gave her a moment to digest his words, and then said, "Does that satisfy you?"

XXXXX

Lisa sat, digesting his words, fighting an internal battle. Half of her was grateful to hear the commitment he felt to her friend. She knew David Rossi enough to know that he meant every word he'd said. She could tell that he was truly in love the petite blonde.

It was her other half that alarmed her. She'd convinced herself that she was nothing more than a "fuck buddy" to him, no matter what her heart said. Or at least she thought she had. Hearing his words, reinforced that thought and for some reason, dredged up the pain one more time.

XXXXX

Rossi watched her expression. She was trying hard to maintain the determined glare, but he could see, just under the surface, a layer of pain. He didn't want to hurt her. He knew he'd done too much of that already. But she pushed it and wouldn't have been satisfied until she heard the truth.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you," he began, but she shook him off.

"I pushed this, Dave," she said, standing. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be a bitch…"

"I understand," he said, standing up.

"I need to go…"

"Lisa," he said, causing her to stop and look at him. "Not that you want or need my opinion…"

"Go on," she said, her expression softening a bit.

"I think we both got it right this time," he said, with a soft smile.

She cocked her head to the side, prompting him to explain.

"Hotch is a good guy," he said, "I think you two are going to be good for each other."

"Thank you," she replied, with a small smile. "I'll see you on Monday, Dave," she said, and walked out of the office before he could reply.

XXXXX

Lisa walked back to her office and sat behind her desk. Warring emotions rushed through her body. She was hurt, sad, and most of all furious. Furious with him for discounting her former love for him but more so, furious with herself.

She shouldn't have stormed into his office, she shouldn't have dredged this up again and she shouldn't feel so bad about what he said to her.

"God you are one screwed up bitch," she sighed, running her hands through her hair and willing herself not to cry.

Hearing her cell phone rang, she looked over at the vibrating piece of electronics. Recognizing the number, she flipped the phone open and placed it to her ear. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself," Hotch's voice began, and she could hear the smile in his voice. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," she dismissed, knowing he wouldn't buy it, but pushing ahead. "So, how's t-ball?'

"Not only did Jack hit a double, but he is one hell of a second baseman," he proudly said. "You should've seen him, Lisa. The kid's got skills."

"I had no doubt," she said, with a fond smile. "Is the game over already?"

"Yeah," he said, quietly, "Hayley and Steve took him out for ice cream. They invited me to go along, but I didn't want to get in the way of their bonding…"

"I'm sorry," she softly said, hearing the pain in his voice. "You've got him all next weekend," she tried.

"I know," he agreed, then, "So, what are you doing this afternoon?"

"I came into work for a bit, but I'm done now. I was thinking of going home. Think you might want to meet me there?"

"I think I'd like that," he agreed.

"I'll be there in half an hour," she promised.

"I'll be right behind you," he echoed, then, quietly, "I love you."

She smiled, allowing those three small words to erase the pain she'd felt earlier. "I love you, too."

Hanging up the phone, she made up her mind to leave the past where it was and to focus her attention on the one relationship that truly mattered to her - her own.


	7. Aunt Lisa Is My Girlfriend

_**If the relationship of father to son could really be reduced to biology, the whole earth would blaze with the glory of fathers and sons.**__**James Baldwin **__**  
1924-1987, American Author**_

Lisa O'Reilly took in her surroundings, casually surveying the people around her from behind the safety of the dark lenses of her Ray Bans.

She watched as a heavyset woman with long, bleached blonde hair ascended the bleachers to her right, wheezing more and more with each level. An equally heavy man who, despite the fact that he was balding, wore a long pony tail, followed closely behind her. Lisa guessed that they were together, as they wore matching t-shirts that displayed a picture of a cute, but chubby little boy in a Phillies baseball cap and red t-shirt.

"Stop smirking," Hotch wryly commented.

"I'm not smirking," she returned, turning her attention to him, "I'm observing."

"Those two," he quietly explained, "Are Nikolai's parents. They're very supportive."

"Or borderline obsessive," she smiled, looking down to the field, where a group of young children in Yankee's hats and t-shirts walked onto the field. "Guess it's in poor taste to boo the opposition in a tee ball game, huh?"

"Just a bit," he agreed, as a little boy in a Phillies hat and matching red t shirt stepped up to the plate. He held a bat that appeared to be as tall as he was.

As Lisa opened her mouth to comment, she was cut off by the loud screaming of the busty brunette two rows down.

"Come on, Ryder!!" the woman screamed.

"Ryder?" Lisa asked, nose wrinkled.

Hotch nodded, "That's his mom, Skye."

"Skye," she nodded, then, teasingly, "And you know here name…how?"

"She's a single mom," he shrugged, "Audrey, the coach's wife, thought I should get to know her better."

"And did you?"

"No," he smartly returned, "I told Audrey about my girlfriend. You know, the redhead who's an expert marksman and trained in hand to hand combat?"

Lisa laughed, "Oh her. I hear she's a real bitch."

"She can be," he allowed, drawing a swat. "Ow…"

"Look!" Lisa excitedly said, "Jack's at bat!"

"Let's go, Bud!" Hotch cheered, clapping. "Keep your eye on the ball!"

Jack approached the tee, eyeing the ball carefully, and then swung. He connected with the ball and sent it out and between first and second base, to where the outfielders had been watching the clouds go by. After a moment's hesitation, Jack realized what he had done and began to run the bases.

"Way to go, Jack!!" Lisa cheered, laughing as pandemonium took over the Yankees team.

Jack paid no mind to the pandemonium as he calmly rounded third and made his way home. She marveled at how much Jack reminded her of his father. Sure, there were some differences, the most obvious being that Jack had Hayley's blonde hair, but he was built like his daddy. Tall and strong, with long legs that made quick time of the reduced length base lines. His calm demeanor just screamed "Hotchner", especially when he reached home plate. Greeted by the wild cheers and screams of his teammates, he replied with a smile and a "who me?" shrug.

"He's so like you that it's scary sometimes," Lisa laughed. "Look at him. He's Mr. Calm, must be in the genes."

Hotch shook his head, "I could never hit like that."

"Maybe we've got a future major league ball player on our hands," she mused, taking in the look of pride that he'd worn since Jack stepped up to the plate.

"You're staring," he commented, looking over the frames of his sunglasses.

"Sorry, I'm liking the proud daddy thing," she smiled.

He blushed slightly, "Yeah, well…"

She leaned over and quietly said, "If we weren't sitting at your son's t ball game, I'd kiss you right now."

"You can kiss me, Lisa," he said, seriously.

"Hotch…" she warned, but he shook his head.

"No, I'm not hiding you any more," he went on, quietly, "I'm not ashamed of our relationship. I think it's time we stopped hiding it."

Surprised by his declaration she smiled, "What brought this on?"

"We're the worst kept secret at Quantico," he simply said, "Why not just drop the façade?"

"People will talk," she tried.

"People already are," he shrugged. "They've been talking before we got together."

"Okay," she nodded, "I say we stop hiding."

He smiled at her, taking her hand and squeezing it. "Good, I knew you'd see things my way."

"Are you sure you want Jack to know?"

"I do," he said.

"Okay…" she said, taking a deep breath and releasing it. "We're officially done hiding."

"Good," he repeated, "Now, I seem to remember this conversation starting with you telling me you would kiss me?"

"Right here? In front of Skye and Nikolai's parents?" she said, with a teasing smile.

"Here seems like as good a place as any," he returned.

"Okay, but you're not getting tongue. There are small kids around."

"I'll take what I can get."

She leaned over and gave him a peck on the lips. "That's what you're getting…for now."

Before she could pull away, he leaned forward and claimed her lips, it was a tame kiss, but she could feel the passion behind it. "And what was that you were saying?" he laughed.

"Watch the game, SSA Hotchner," she smartly returned, "The Phillies are back out in the field."

XXXXX

Lisa had never been to a tee ball game, so the rules, or lack there of, were strange to her. Each player got an at bat in every inning. Because of this, the game only went four innings. Of course, after watching nine kids bat every half inning, she was ready for the fourth inning to end.

Jack's team won 7 to 3, and three of those runs were courtesy of one Jack Hotchner. Hotch was positively beaming with pride and Lisa had to admit, she was just as proud. Of course, she was thrilled to see Hotch this way. He'd been so genuinely happy all afternoon, that she wished she could bottle this and bring it with her to Quantico. Although, it probably wouldn't be very productive, it would be a welcome change.

He'd also been very affectionate, in a courtly, G-rated way. Over the course of the game, he'd committed several public displays of affection, from hand holding, to slipping his arm around her shoulder, to a quick peck on the lips here and there. In between the second and third innings he ran down to the snack bar and bought her an ice cream cone, which she coaxed him into sharing with her.

The whole afternoon had been light, sweet, and fun and as they sat together in a pizza parlor, along with the families of most of both teams, she decided that she could get very used to this life.

"Aun' Lisa," Jack said, setting down his cup of soda. "Did you like my game?"

"I did, Jack," she smiled. "Thank you for letting me come."

"You can come next time," he said, taking a bite of pizza. "Daddy c'n bring you."

"Don't talk with a mouthful, Bud," Hotch reminded.

Jack swallowed, then said, "Mommy brings Steven to the games."

"She does?" Hotch asked, taking a bite of his own slice.

Jack nodded. "Steven is her…" he tried to remember the word. "Boyfriend."

Hotch swallowed, "Yes, he is," he agreed.

"Aun' Lisa," Jack said, looking over at her. "Is Daddy your boyfriend?"

Lisa looked at him, not quite sure what to say.

"Yes, Jack," Hotch said, "Aunt Lisa is my girlfriend."

Jack grinned, "Really?" he asked, looking at Lisa.

"Really," she replied with a smile.

"That rocks!" he replied, pumping his fist in the air.

"Yeah, it does," Hotch agreed, giving Lisa a wink. "Finish your pizza, Bud. Your mom's going to be here to pick you up in half an hour."

"I thought we were dropping him off," Lisa replied, curiously.

"She called while you were in the bathroom," he explained. "She's coming right by here on her way home and said she'd save us the trip."

"Is Steven with her?" Lisa asked. She'd never met Steven and was terribly curious to see this new man of Hayley's.

He shook his head, "She said he was golfing today."

"Oh," she rolled her eyes.

"Daddy," Jack began., "I finished. C'n I play Duck Hunt?"

"I don't have any quarters," he said, "Let me get some change and we'll play."

"I've got quarters," Lisa winked, reaching into her purse and producing her change purse. "Come on, Jack. Let's go grab the machine before someone else gets it."

XXXXX

The three of them took over the Duck Hunt game, taking turns with the rifle, Lisa and Jack teaming against Hotch. They were laughing and having a great time, not really caring about the time or their surroundings. They didn't notice when Hayley walked into the pizza parlor.

"Come on, Jack," Lisa said, standing behind the chair he'd been standing on. "Get that brown duck and we win."

"I c'n do it!" Jack grinned, narrowing his eyes and focusing on the screen.

"Easy…" she coaxed, watching over his shoulder as he pulled the trigger and shot the duck.

"I did it!!!" He cheered, jumping up and down.

"You sure did!" She cheered, "High five!" He high fived her then threw his arms around her neck in a bear hug.

"No fair," Hotch playfully sniffed, "You two are pro's."

"I not a pro, Daddy," Jack seriously said, patting Hoch's arm. "I'm just good."

"And what's your excuse?" Hotch asked, with a playful glare at Lisa.

"I'm some FBI guy's redheaded girlfriend," she quipped.

He leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss, "And don't you forget it."

"OOOH," Jack giggled, "You kissed her!!"

"Yeah, I did," Hotch laughed, "What are you gonna do about it?"

"This!" Jack laughed, jumping at him with arms wide open.

Thinking quickly. Hotch caught him in mid jump. "Help, I'm being attached by a Monkey Boy."

"Tickle him, Aun' Lisa!" Jack giggled.

"Well, I don't know," she asked. He could see she was debating whether or not to do as Jack instructed.

"Come on, I got him…he won't get you…" Jack encouraged.

"Well, since you put it that way," she laughed, and, for the first time in the entire time he'd known her, she tickled him.

"No fair," he laughed, "You're ganging up on me."

"We've got him, Jack!" Lisa said, wearing a devilish grin as she found a ticklish spot on his side that he never knew existed. "He's squirming."

"Get 'im, Aun' Lisa!" Jack cheered.

"You think you've got me, huh?" Hotch said, holding Jack in one arm, he took his free arm and wrapped it around her, pulling her close to him. "Who's got who now?" he asked, with an evil smile.

The sound of someone clearing their throat caused him to turn and find Hayley standing behind them. She did not look pleased.

"Mommy!" Jack excitedly said, jumping from Hotch's arms to Hayley's.

"Hey there, Jack," Hayley said, with an exaggerated smile. "How was your game?"

"I did good, Mommy! Then we had pizza and played Duck Hunt."

"Did you have a good time?"

"I did," he nodded, "Aun' Lisa and me beated Daddy!"

"That's great, Jack," she said, setting him down. "Why don't you go over and finish your soda." Once Jack had walked back to the table, she looked up at her ex husband. "Having fun, Aaron?"

"I was," he returned, willing himself to keep the smile. "Jack had a great game."

"And how would you know?" she asked, her voice quiet, but clearly angry. "I hear you spent half the game kissing your redheaded girlfriend."

"You have spies at the game now?" Lisa replied, drawing Hayley's gaze.

"I figured it would be you," Hayley sniffed.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Lisa returned, her back straightening, but her tone remaining quiet.

"I'm surprised you waited this long to bring your affair out into the open," Hayley hissed.

"Hayley," Hotch finally interjected, "Not here. We both know all of these people. Jack deserves better than to see us create an unnecessary scene that he won't understand. We're mature adults…"

"At least two of us are," Lisa said, under her breath.

Hotch closed his eyes and counted, waiting for Hayley's implosion. He made it all the way to three before he heard his ex wife's hiss and slowly opened his eyes to find her unleashing her venom on Lisa.

"How dare you?" Hayley quietly hissed, "I'm not the one playing house with someone else's husband."

"Hayley, Darling," Lisa said, her tone quiet, but equally as full of venom as Hayley's. "In case you've forgotten, he's your EX-husband. You divorced him, remember?"

"And you just came along and snatched him right up, didn't you? Were you watching and waiting? Or had you been there all along?"

Unable to take any more, Hotch spoke, "Enough."

"Not hardly enough, Aaron," Hayley spat. "How dare you bring her to Jack's game and expose our friends to her."

"What the hell does that mean?" Lisa asked, fighting to stay calm.

"I know all about you, Lisa," she went on, "Is it your goal in life to sleep your way through every married man in the Bureau?"

"You bitch," Lisa hissed, and he could see, she was one step away from losing it.

Before this escalated any further and he lost total control, he spoke. "Hayley, you have a choice. Either you take Jack and go or I do. But I will not have him witness this."

"You'll do no such thing," she said, fixing him with a deadly glare. "You can waste your time with your little whore. But you will not involve my son with her."

Her last sentence nearly destroyed the calm he'd worked so hard to maintain. "Do not threaten me, Hayley. You will lose."

"We'll see about that," she returned, then, forcing a smile walked to Jack, "Come on, Jack. Let's go home."

"Okay, Mommy," he said, running to Hotch, "Bye Daddy!"

Hotch picked him up and hugged him. "You be good for your mom, okay, Bud? I'll call you tomorrow."

"Okay, Daddy!" he said, then turned to Lisa, "Bye Aun' Lisa!"

"Bye Jack!" she said, forcing on a smile. "See you soon!"

"Over my dead body," Hayley muttered, glaring at Lisa.

"It could be arranged," Lisa returned, glaring back at her.

"Don't forget your glove and your hat, Jack," Hotch said, watching as a blissfully unaware Jack, collected his things, then allowed Hayley to lead him out of the restaurant. He turned to find Lisa lifting her purse and sunglasses from the table.

"I'll be in the car," she said, walking off.

Hotch released the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. After throwing a tip on the table for the waitress, he walked out of the restaurant.


	8. I Thought I Could Do the Family Thing

**As always, thank you to my "Cyber Sisters" who have helped me through this story. Special thank you to Tonnie for the JJ/Rossi scene! And to my readers, who keep me going with your comments and finally, to Squarey, who started me on this Hotch journey!!!**

_**For believe me, in this world which is ever slipping from under our feet, it is the prerogative of friendship to grow old with one's friends.**__**Arthur S. Hardy **_

Standing on the back deck of David Rossi's home, Aaron Hotchner could see exactly what lead his old friend to purchase this property. The view of the water and forest was breath taking and the peace and quiet were calming. He needed calming.

"Sam Adams, right?" Rossi asked, handing him a bottle of beer.

"Good memory," he nodded, "Thanks."

Rossi shook his head, "That's Jennifer's doing. I barely remember what kind of beer I drink."

Hotch shook his head, "How damn domesticated are you two?"

Rossi laughed, "It's amazing, isn't it? For three marriages I fought like hell not to fall into some kind of domestic bliss. Why the hell did I do that?"

"Waiting for the right woman to fall with?" Hotch suggested, then took a long drink.

"And what about you?" Rossi asked, with a wry smile.

"What about me?"

Rossi raised a brow, "Okay, what's going on? Is their trouble in paradise?"

Hotch shrugged, debating whether or not to get into it.

"Seriously, Hotch, is everything okay?" he asked, concern creeping in.

"Everything's good with Lisa and I," he assured, "Well, except for the fact that she's pissed at me right now."

"What'd you do to incur her wrath?"

Hotch took a long drink, and then swallowed before explaining. "We went to Jack's game yesterday."

"She doesn't like tee ball?"

Hotch shook his head, "No, we had a great time. We took Jack to get pizza afterwards and she was having a blast. Until Hayley showed up."

"Oh shit…" was Rossi's knowing reply.

"Yeah," Hotch nodded. "She walked in just as we were all horsing around playing a video game."

"And what did she do?"

"Tore into Lisa," he tiredly said.

"Cat fight," Rossi snickered, taking a drink of his beer.

"Had we not been in the pizza parlor it would have been," he agreed. "Hayley said some particularly nasty things."

"Sure she did," Rossi agreed, "She came in to find herself replaced…"

"Not replaced…"

"I know," he assured him, "But you know that's what went through her mind."

Hotch nodded, "She kept referring to me as her husband. Pissed Lisa off big time."

"So, did Lisa tear you a new one when you got home?"

"No," he said, surprise still evident in his voice, "As a matter of fact, she said very little at first. I had to provoke her into talking."

"Shit, she was pissed."

"Yeah. I thought she was going to throw me out once or twice."

"I'm surprised she didn't."

"She didn't," he shrugged, "I almost wish she had."

"You're still fighting?"

"We've been discussing whether or not we should break up. Seems she's convinced I'll lose my visitation with Jack over her."

Rossi nodded knowingly, "Hayley's parting words?"

Hotch nodded.

"You think she's serious?"

"I think she was angry and lashing out," Hotch allowed, "I don't think she'd go that far."

"I'll give you my lawyer's number," Rossi simply said, "One phone call and it will all go away. Two phone calls and you'll have full custody."

Hotch shook his head, "I don't want to do that, Dave. I don't want to hurt Hayley any more than I already have and I don't want to hurt Jack." He leaned on the railing and looked out over the water. "And I don't want to hurt Lisa. But I think I already have."

XXXXX

"Okay, JJ, you know me. I'm not the best cook, but give me something to do! I can't sit back and watch," Lisa said, standing near the kitchen counter, glass of wine in her hand.

"I've got pretty much everything ready to go," the petite blonde said with a smile, "The steaks are marinating and as soon as Dave gets the grille warmed up, we'll get them cooking. I hope you don't mind that we're just doing steak and potatoes."

"Please! I'm thrilled when anybody makes me dinner. Hotch actually made hamburgers for us on Friday night and I was overjoyed," she laughed, remembering the beginning of their weekend. Then, remembering the turn it took, she frowned.

"Lisa, it's none of my business, but…is something wrong?" JJ ventured, clearly wondering if she was over stepping her bounds.

Lisa stared down and the rich red wine in her glass and debated the merits of telling JJ the whole story.

"You can trust me," JJ smiled; hopefully, "I'm very good at keeping private issues private."

Lisa smiled at her friend, "Yeah, you are," she agreed. "It's funny, you know? Yesterday, he tells me that he's tired of hiding our relationship and that he wants to just bring it out in the open and this morning, we're talking about whether or not we're even going to continue to have a relationship."

"What happened?" JJ asked, refilling their wine glasses.

"We had such a great weekend. He had Jack from Friday night and since we decided it was time that Jack started to get used to our relationship, I went over and had dinner with them."

"How did that go?" JJ asked.

"We had a lot of fun. Jack's a great kid and he loves his Aunt Lisa. Anyway, I left sometime after he put Jack to bed. They picked me up yesterday and we went to his tee ball game." Lisa took a drink of wine. "That's where he announced that he was ready to go public. So, we did. And you know what? It was nice. We didn't do anything major, but we held hands, had a little kiss here and there, it was all very Disney movie."

JJ smiled, encouraging her to continue.

"Jack had a great game, so we all went out for pizza afterwards. It was fun, you know? Kinda like being a family for a day," she shrugged.

JJ gave her a knowing smile, "And you liked it?"

Lisa nodded, "I did, Jayje, I really did. I mean, for the first time in my adult life, I thought I could really do the family thing. Until Hayley showed up."

"Oh no…"

"Oh yes," Lisa said, taking another sip of wine. "She was in full bitch mode."

"Did she start a scene?"

"She tried. I'm sure if we weren't standing in a crowded pizza place, it would have been much worse," she said, anger flowing back, "I'm telling you, JJ, if I'd have been armed, I would have shot her."

JJ laughed, "What did she do?"

"She said a whole lot of nasty shit," Lisa dismissed, "But her parting shot was the worst. She told him that he wasn't allowed to bring Jack near me and actually hinted at taking away his visitation rights."

"What a bitch," JJ agreed.

"Yeah, well, needless to say, we spent all last night hashing and rehashing things."

"And where did it end up?"

Lisa shrugged. "I'm not sure. He won't even listen to me when I tell him that I'll walk away from the relationship before I'd let him lose custody." She set the wine glass down and massaged her temples. Feeling JJ's hand on her arm, she looked up.

"Lisa," JJ said, offering her a smile, "You know he loves you."

"Yeah," she nodded. "I love him, too, but I'll be damned if I'm going to get in the way of his relationship with his son."

XXXXX

Dinner was delicious, perfectly grilled steaks and baked potatoes with a huge salad. They ate out on the back deck, enjoying the clear June evening. Despite the tension between them, Lisa and Hotch had relaxed and the conversation flowed freely. They sat after they all finished eating, lingering over the rest of the wine, talking comfortably.

Rossi watched them as they sat comfortably close, their shoulders touching, hands held casually, resting on her knee. He wasn't surprised to find his friends together, on the contrary, he's long since decided they would make a good pair. It just took them a while to figure it out.

"Do you remember," Lisa began, with a laugh, "The night we got snowed in to the hotel in Vermont?"

"Now that was a night," Rossi chuckled at the memory.

"Too much time on our hands and entirely too much alcohol," Hotch agreed.

"And a brand new craze that was sweeping the nation," Lisa said, and then dissolved into laugher, "Karaoke."

"What's so funny about karaoke?" JJ asked.

"On its own?" Rossi began, slipping his arm around her shoulders, "There's nothing funny about karaoke. Until you added Hotch to the mix." He laughed.

"I was drunk," Hotch dismissed, looking at Lisa, "This one decided that we were going to do shots of kamikazes."

"And this one," she returned, jerking a thumb at him, "Decided he could drink me under the table."

"Of course," Rossi added, "He forgot that Lisa's got a hollow leg."

"I'm Irish, so sue me," she sniffed, then, "So we're in this stereotypical hotel bar and there's a whole bunch of old folks who're stuck at the hotel, too. So, what did he do? He decided to get up and sing karaoke."

"Wait a minute," Hotch protested, "I did not decide. You bet me. Although, for the life of me, I can't remember the bet."

"Oh, I can," Rossi smartly said. "You be her she wouldn't flash me."

"Oh, shit," Lisa laughed, rolling her eyes, "I remember that…I flashed you and you motor boated me!"

"And because of your cheep thrill," Hotch concluded, "I had to sing karaoke."

"You bet me I wouldn't do it," she shrugged.

"Yeah, but the funniest part was the song Lisa chose for you," Rossi laughed, vividly picturing the night in his mind.

"What song did you pick?" JJ asked.

"Madonna's Like a Virgin!" Lisa howled.

"I think I did a good job," Hotch shrugged.

"I wish I could've seen that one," JJ laughed.

"Those were crazy days," Lisa mused.

"But, we all survived," Rossi agreed, holding up his wine glass in a toast. "And, on that note, who wants desert?"

"Desert?" Lisa asked, with an exaggerated grin.

"I knew that would get a rise out of you," Rossi laughed. "Yes, desert. There's an amazing Italian Bakery right outside of Toano. They make one hell of a tiramisu."

"Better than Tonelli's up in Philly?" she challenged.

"I think so," he nodded, "But I'll let you decide."

"I'll go get desert," JJ said, standing and collecting dinner plates.

"I'll help you," Rossi said, standing and filing his hands with plates before following her into the kitchen.

He followed her into the house, knowing, by the way she walked that something was amiss. "Jennifer," he began, as they entered the kitchen. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she dismissed, setting the dishes in the sink.

Rossi set the dishes he held on the counter, then took her by her shoulders and turned her to face him. "Cara, something is wrong. You can't hide it from me."

"It's silly," she repeated, a faint blush creeping up on her cheeks.

"If it upsets you, it's not silly," he countered, "Now, tell me."

"Trust me, Dave, it is silly," she said, trying to laugh. "Sitting out there, listening to you all go on about the "good old days", I actually felt jealous."

"Jealous?" he asked, wanting her to go on.

She nodded, "The three of you have such a history together. Full of these funny stories and great experiences."

"Trust me, Sweetheart;" he said with a smile, "It wasn't all that great."

"I know, but," she shrugged, "See, I told you it was silly."

He knew there was more to it and wasn't going to let her go until he knew the full story. "Jennifer, what's really eating you?"

"This is going to sound awful," she went on. "But I need you to tell me something, Dave. And I need you to be perfectly honest with me."

"Always," he agreed.

"Are you still attracted to Lisa?"

Rossi raised a brow, taken off guard by her question. "Am I still attracted to Lisa?"

"That's what I asked," she simply said.

"I'm with you, Cara Mia," he said, with a smile, "There is no other woman." Seeing that his answer had not assuaged her doubt, he pulled her into his arms. "I've told you before, Jennifer. I've never met a woman like you before."

"Come on, Dave," she went on, "I know the history. You said it yourself that Lisa's changed a lot over the years, for the better."

"And she has," he went on. "She's grown and matured."

"And become more attractive," JJ concluded.

"Darling, Lisa is and always was a very attractive woman, but I'm no longer attracted to her. She's a friend, nothing more," he assured her, hoping she believed him.

"And if she suddenly decided that she was interested in picking up where you left off?"

"It wouldn't happen," he decided, "Besides, did you see the two of them together? Darling, she never looked at me like she looks at Hotch, I can assure you of that."

He could see that she still wasn't buying it, "Jennifer, I love you. I don't know how much more I can say to convince you that I have the woman I want for the rest of my life."

She slipped out of his embrace, "Dave, I hear how you laugh with her. I can see the smile on your face when you look at her."

He could see that she needed reassurance, so softly, he said, "JJ, what you see and hear is a friend laughing with a friend. Tell me, what do you see when I look at you, Cara? Has that changed?"

JJ bit her lip and then shook her head. "I see the man that I love."

"And I hope that you're seeing that he loves you, too. And that he will do whatever necessary to prove that love to you." He pulled her close and in a low steady voice he said, "And as soon as they leave, I will show you just what you mean to me."

"Dave," she laughed, her mood lightening

"Just tell me that you believe me," he said.

She smiled at him, "I believe you. Really."

He studied her face, looking into her eyes to confirm her words. Finding what he was after, he kissed her softly.

XXXXX

Lisa stood, just out of their line of site in the hallway. She'd brought in the rest of the dinner dishes, but hearing their voices she stopped, trying to think of a way to announce her presence and not just barge in on their conversation. As she thought, she heard them talking, their words settling like lead in the pit of her stomach.

As Dave kissed JJ, she walked into the kitchen, and in a bright voice said, "I brought the rest of the dishes…oh, sorry, I walked in on something."

"Sorry," JJ blushed.

"Don't be sorry, it's your kitchen!" she dismissed, setting the dishes on the counter. "I'll let you two get back to what you were doing."

"We'll be right out with desert," JJ called after her.

Lisa walked quickly back out onto the deck, expecting to find Hotch sitting at the table where she'd left him. She was surprised to find his chair empty. Casting her eyes around, the porch and the area below, she found him standing on the banks of the lake, tossing stones into the water.

She was overwhelmed by the need to be in his arms. It wasn't a sexual need, but an emotional one and recognizing that fact scared her. She quickly made her way down the stairs and walked up behind him.

"Whatcha doin'?" she asked, wiling herself to hold back all of the emotion she felt.

XXXXX

He turned to face her and was surprised at the sadness he found in her eyes. She was wearing a smile, which he knew was for his behalf. He wondered what caused her sadness and said a silent prayer that she hadn't made up her mind to walk away.

"I was trying to skim stones across the lake," he said, tossing one last stone out at the water. "But there aren't any flat enough to do it." He turned back to look at her, "What about you?"

"I saw you standing here and thought I'd try to steal a minute alone with you," she said, coming a step closer.

Reaching out, he took her hand and pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tightly.

"Lisa," he began.

She pulled back to look at him, "Let's duck out of here as soon as desert's done, okay?"

He raised a brow, "Is everything okay?"

"I'm starting to drag," she agreed, "I think I need a good night's sleep next to my favorite guy."

"So I'm spending the night, am I?"

She smiled at him, "As if you didn't think you were."

"Hey, you two love birds," Rossi's voice called from the desk, "Come on up for some coffee and desert."

"We leave when we're done, right?" she asked.

"Sure," he nodded, then kissed her softly. "We'll leave when we're done."


	9. Can we stop talking this to death?

_**In every loving woman there is a priestess of the past -- a pious guardian of some affection, of which the object has disappeared.**__**Henri Frederic Amiel **__**  
1821-1881, Swiss Philosopher, Poet, Critic**_

Honoring Lisa's request, they'd left Rossi's home after desert, to begin the nearly two hour drive back to Lisa's Woodbridge, VA condo. She'd been strangely quiet on the way home. For the first half hour of the drive, he tried to drag her into conversation, but eventually left her alone with her thoughts.

Those thoughts frightened him. Before heading out to Little Creek, they'd been seriously discussing ending their relationship. Well, she'd been discussing it. He refused to entertain the subject. Hayley's tirade had affected Lisa deeply. She'd almost cancelled their dinner plans, but he talked her into going.

He was glad he did, as she seemed to relax and liven up once they reached Rossi's place. Until sometime before desert, when despite her smile and continued forced levity, he knew it had all come crashing back down. As they drove along, listening to Tom Petty singing about how the waiting is the hardest part, he wondered if she was trying to come up with the words to tell him it was over.

He followed her into the condo, watching as she kicked off her sandals, leaving them in the middle of the walkway. As he usually did, he simply pushed them aside, out of the walk way, and followed her back to the bedroom.

He stood in the doorway, watching as she unbuttoned the cotton blouse she'd worn to dinner. Unable to stand the unusual silence any longer, he spoke.

"Lisa, what's going on?"

She looked up at him, surprise registering on her face, "Nothing's going on, Hotch."

"Nice try," he said, flatly.

She closed her eyes for a moment, and then sat on the bed. "I've been thinking and I need to talk to you about it."

"Okay," he said, sitting near her.

"I think it would be best if I not only removed myself from this relationship, but also removed myself from Quantico," she began, her words taking the air from his lungs.

She didn't look at him, which told him that she wasn't totally convinced of her decision. Remaining silent, he waited for her to continue.

"This weekend has proved a lot to me," she thoughtfully said, "I realized a few things about myself and about my life. I'm in my 40's and I've been living a pretty damn selfish life. I've had one hell of a career," she said, with a smile. "I've been part of the creation of two units that were unheard of when I started in the Academy. I've done a lot…but maybe it's time for me to let my career take a back seat." She looked at him, but only for a moment, before continuing. "Walter Skinner's been calling me. They need a Unit Chief in Hostage Negotiations. He wants to talk to me and see what he can do to talk me back into the Hoover Building."

Hotch was not aware of this and didn't try to mask his surprise. He'd have to place a call to Skinner and have a little chat with his old friend.

"I'm going to call him in the morning and tell him I'll come in to DC to talk to him," she said.

"You'd just walk away from CASMIRC?" he asked, keeping his tone neutral.

"CASMIRC will survive with out me, Hotch. Just like the BAU did," she dismissed. "I need to get out of Quantico."

"Why?"

"I've been the source of too many rumors and stories and I make too many people uncomfortable by my presence."

"The stories and rumors never bothered you before," he countered, "And just who is it that you make uncomfortable?"

"JJ for one," she said.

"JJ?"

"Yes, JJ," she smartly returned, "I walked in on a conversation she was having with Dave this afternoon. Apparently, she's afraid that at some point I'm going to decide I want him back and that he won't be able to resist me."

Hotch couldn't imagine JJ saying anything of the sort. "Are you sure that's what you heard?"

"Do I look like I've had a lobotomy?" she snapped. "I heard her. She asked him if he was still attracted to me."

"And what did he say?" He'd wanted the answer to that question himself, a flash of possessive anger flowing through him.

"Take off the caveman suit," she dismissed, "He said I was attractive, but he wasn't attracted to me or something like that. But apparently that didn't make her happy. She asked what he'd do if I decided I wanted him back." She sniffed, "As if I gave any indication at all that I would ever do that."

"You've got a strong history with Dave," he rationalized.

"So do you," she countered.

"True…but I've never slept with him."

"And now we're right back to the point of my argument….I did sleep with him. And apparently, this makes me some horrible man stealing succubus who's after every married man in the Bureau."

She paraphrased Hayley's words from the night before and he realized where this all came from. JJ merely threw out a "what if", but on the heels of Hayley's diatribe, her words weighed heavily.

"Lisa," he began, but she cut him off.

"No," she said, holding up a hand, "Please let me finish."

"Go on," he returned. Truthfully, he didn't want to hear another word. He refused to entertain the notion of her leaving Quantico or leaving him.

"So, if Walt is convincing enough, my plan is to transfer out of Quantico," she said, looking away. "And also, to walk out of your life before I ruin it any further. Trust me; you'll be glad that I'm doing this."

Anger and frustration took a hold on his emotions, "Are you finished?"

"I am, but you won't change my mind."

XXXXX

When he spoke, his voice was a controlled calm, but she could hear the anger bubbling under the surface.

"The hell I won't," he said, eyes narrowing. "Are you listening to yourself? You're going to walk away from a unit you helped create, a unit you love, because you make JJ uncomfortable and are the subject of rumors?"

"You make it sound so trivial," she returned, matching his tone.

"It is," he said, clearly pissed off. "You said you'd lived a selfish life? I think this would be the most selfish thing you could do."

"Maybe I want to have a life, Hotch. A life away from the FBI."

"From the sounds of it, you don't want that either," he countered.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"I thought we were working on a life," he tried. "But you want to walk away from that, as well."

"You don't need me in your life," she protested.

"Who the hell says I don't?"

"I do," she firmly replied. "You don't need people looking at you and thinking, Oh, there's Aaron Hotchner, he's hooked up with that redheaded slut. You know, the one who sleeps with married men."

"You slept with one married man, Lisa," he countered, wearing his patented "I'm so tired of this" expression. "And no matter how much people _think_ you've slept around, I know the truth. You're not a slut."

"Or so you say," she sniffed. "Look at my track record."

"You're not the only one who had an affair, Lisa," he said, anger rising.

"What?" she asked, curiously.

"I said, you're not the only one who's had an affair."

Lisa looked at him, what the hell was he saying? "What are you talking about?"

"A few years back, after you'd gone over to CASMIRC, we worked with Scotland Yard on a case."

Lisa nodded, remembering. "I remember, you worked with Kate Joyner. Right afterwards, she joined the New York Field Office. I can remember everyone raving about her." She said, and then stopped, noticing the guilty look on his face. Suddenly his point became clear. "You slept with her?"

He nodded. "I'm not proud of it."

"What did you do? Have a drunken one night stand?" She tried to dismiss it as a fling, although his expression told her it wasn't.

He shook his head, "I was in England for three weeks."

"You were with her the whole time?"

"The last two weeks," he allowed. "And I'm not proud of it."

"Hayley never knew," she decided.

"No, she didn't," he admitted. "I can sit here and make excuses about how and why it happened, but that won't change anything. I never told her, but I felt guilty about it for the rest of our marriage."

"I thought you two were the perfect couple."

He shrugged, "We weren't, Lisa. If we were, it never would have happened."

Lisa needed to understand why her friend did this; it was so out of his character. "Did you think you were falling in love with Kate?"

He seemed surprised by her question. "No, I cared for her. Still do. But I wasn't in love with her."

"So, you had an affair," she nodded, digesting this new information. It didn't change the way she felt about herself. "That doesn't change things. No one knows about your affair. No one looks at you as if you're going to steal their woman."

XXXXX

She wasn't going to give him an inch. She'd made up her mind and was as stubborn as they came. But so was he and he was growing tired of watching her beat herself up.

"Contrary to what you believe, very few people in Quantico know that you and Dave had an affair," he said, speaking to her as he would address an employee with a discipline problem. "They know about Dave's reputation, but the only reputation you have is based on your career. As for Hayley? She said those things to hurt you and she did. You have no idea how angry I am with her."

"She spoke the truth," Lisa shrugged.

"She didn't speak the truth," was his firm reply, as he stood up. "She over reacted."

"No…" she continued but he cut her off.

"Stand up," he commanded.

"What?"

"I said, stand up."

Curious, she stood. She watched him as he stepped to her, grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her towards the full length mirror on her closet door.

"Look in the mirror…" he commanded.

She looked, frowning at what she saw. Her face was flushed with emotion and her eyes were wild. "I don't like what I see," she said.

"Look past yourself, Lisa," he continued, leaning close, his lips near her ear. "Look at the whole picture. What do you see?"

"You," she softly said, "Standing behind me."

"Want to know what I see?" he said, his voice low and sure. "I see a woman who has the world at her fingertips because she fought tooth and nail to get where she is today. I see a woman who's intelligent and beautiful and is probably the only woman I've ever met who could pull the stick out of my ass and keep me on my toes. And I see a woman that deserves a hell of a lot more than what I can offer her."

She wanted to give in to his persuasive words, to lean back and allow his body to surround hers, but she held her ground, still looking into the mirror, watching their reflections. "Hotch, your divorce is still fresh and no matter how much you deny it, you're on the rebound. I should have considered that before I pushed us down this road. We need to stop this. We've dragged Jack into it and you don't want him caught in the middle. You need…"

"I need you, Lisa," he said, cutting her off. "And Jack will be much better off if his Aunt Lisa remains in his life."

"And all of this wouldn't have happened if I didn't get drunk and…"

"How do you know?" he asked, turning her to face him. "You asked me that first night if I ever thought about you and I didn't answer because I was afraid to admit that I did think about you, more than I should have. You didn't push me into bed with you, Lisa. I went willingly every step of the way."

"But…"

"No," he said, shaking his head, "You said you want a life away from Quantico, well so do I. I had one once and I let it slip away. I blamed myself for a long time, but then I realized that Hayley was just as much as fault. She gave up the fight just as easily as I did."

"I believe I've heard that somewhere before," she said, allowing a soft smile to form on her lips.

"And even when you told me that, I refused to believe it," he stopped, looking into her eyes. "You and I are different. We can have that life away from Quantico, Lisa. Anyway you want it."

"Hotch…"

"Do you still want it?"

"Of course I want it," she replied, feeling as if she might cry. "And yes, damn it, I want it with you. I just don't want to cause any problems…"

"You won't, you haven't. Hayley's been throwing around that threat since we first split. You know that. This is just her latest reason. She's not going to do anything. If you walk away from me because of her empty threats, than you've let her win."

Lisa watched as his face softened and he said, "I'm tired of fighting with you. I'm tired of hiding this relationship. I'm not ashamed of you, no matter what you think."

"But, people will talk…"

"And so what if they do?" he countered. "I am in completely and madly in love with you, Lisa. I want to be with you, I want a future with you. But, if you feel that strongly that we need to end it we will. I'll leave and you can call Walt Skinner. But I need to hear you say it. You need to tell me to go."

"You know I can't do that," she replied, her head swirling with emotions. Aaron Hotchner was not a man to throw words like that around just to get his way. He did not say what people wanted to hear, he spoke the truth. And hearing that truth from him both thrilled and frightened her.

"Then work with me here," he said with a tentative smile. "Tell me what I can do to prove to you that I am into this 100%."

"You've already done it," she said, slipping her arms around him. "This is so not me. I'm not like this…"

"You're human," he dismissed, "And you forget, I have seen you like this before."

"And you love me despite of it," she laughed.

"I love you because of it," he countered. "You're one of the strongest women I've ever met. It's okay to let your guard down now and then." He smiled at her, "I'm a fine one to give that advice, aren't I?"

"You read my mind."

"Wait, she's smiling," he observed, wearing a smile of his own. "Does that mean you're not going to tell me to leave?"

"I'm not going to tell you to leave," she softly said, kissing him.

"Good," he said, flashing a smile, "Now, can we stop talking this to death? I think there are much more appropriate ways to share our feelings."

And share they did, making love until they both lay, satiated, exhausted, but smiling. Neither of them spoke as they lay together. There was nothing to say. Instead, they just enjoyed the silence, each lost in their thoughts about the future, secure in the knowledge that they would face it together.


	10. Vegas Adventure Part 1

"_**Our whole life is an attempt to discover when our spontaneity is whimsical, sentimental irresponsibility and when it is a valid expression of our deepest desires and values."**_

_**Helen Merell Lynd**_

Aaron Hotchner flipped his cell phone shut and set it back down on his desk. He hadn't expected a call from his brother Sean. Hell, he'd talked to him a week ago and couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten two calls in one week. But at nearly 11 am, Sean called and dropped his latest bombshell. Seems he and his girlfriend du jour, Marina, had decided to get married.

He laughed, at first, drawing a sarcastic comeback from his brother, who then assured him that he and Marina had been together for nearly a year and that this was "the real thing". Allowing him the benefit of the doubt, Hotch asked if they'd set a date. To his surprise, they had. It seems they decided to get married in Las Vegas, a week from Friday. Sean wanted his brother to be there, if he could.

Promising him he would check his schedule and get back to him, Hotch hung up the phone. Las Vegas. Why in God's name did they want to get married in Las Vegas? Wasn't Manhattan's City Hall sufficient? Did they have to fly three quarters of the way across the country to get married by an Elvis impersonator?

Shaking his head, he decided to share this one with Lisa. He no longer worried about calling her in the middle of the day, now that they stopped hiding their relationship. As he suspected, no one in either of their units was surprised in the least. Nor did it warrant any concern, except for an obligatory warning conversation with Erin Strauss.

Surprisingly, she wasn't too concerned either. Not that either one of them gave her reason to be concerned. They'd both displayed nothing but professionalism and continued to do so. They didn't even commit any public displays of affection while they were there. It wasn't like he stole into her office during the middle of the day for a quickie, as tempting as it may have been.

Outside of Quantico, they were doing really well. They'd fallen into a comfortable routine over the summer, as much as their respective case loads would allow. When they were both in town, they'd spend their nights together, usually at Lisa's condo.

Despite Hayley's venomous threat, she hadn't done a thing to change the custody arrangement. Lisa decided that she obviously wanted to have every other weekend free to spend golfing with Steven. It didn't matter the reason, though. Jack loved having Lisa around and Lisa loved being around him. Hotch had to admit that he enjoyed their family time almost as he enjoyed being alone with her.

Picking up his desk phone, he quickly dialed Lisa's extension. After two rings, she answered.

"Lisa O'Reilly," she said, clearly irritated by the interruption.

"Did I catch you in the middle of something?" he asked, with a laugh.

"I'm always in the middle of something," she returned, and he could hear the smile in her voice. "But I can handle interruptions like this. What's up?"

"Sean called."

"Twice in one week? Is everything okay?"

"You're not going to believe this, but he and Marina have decided to get married."

"Get out!" She laughed, "Really? Sean Hotchner, tying the knot? Damn…"

"It gets better…"

"Oh no," she laughed, "Tell me…"

"They're doing it in Vegas."

"Vegas, huh? Wow. So, when's the big day?"

"A week from Friday," he went on, "He asked me to go."

"Of course you're going," she dismissed, "You have to. You're his big brother, you have to be there."

"_We_ have to be there," he corrected. "I'm not going to a Vegas wedding without you."

"I most certainly hope not!" she playfully sniffed, "Just picture it, Hotch. You and me in Sin City, we can hit all the hot spots…go see Tom Jones…"

"Is he even still alive?" Hotch laughed.

"Yes," she returned, smartly, "And just be glad I'm not a Celine Dion fan."

"So, I guess I should tell him we'll be there?"

"With bells on," she decided.

XXXXX

Despite Sean Hotchner's history with women, Hotch was surprised to find that Marina was an intelligent, goal oriented woman. Petite, with long dark hair, Marina was the daughter of Russian immigrants, who'd moved the family to New York from Moscow in 1985.

Marina made the best of the move, excelling in school, attending NYU and graduating with a degree in marketing. She worked for a bridal fashion company in Manhattan. After spending her days seeing the excesses of today's over the top weddings, Marina firmly decided that a Vegas wedding was the only type of wedding for her.

Her heartfelt explanation over dinner on the night before the big event, made sense to Hotch and he was able to relax and come to terms with the whole experience. Also helping was the detailed agenda that Marina had created and printed out for them. He had to admit, he was really starting to like his brother's fiancé.

Lisa and Marina hit it off instantly, despite the nearly 14 year age difference. Marina had included Lisa when she booked her day of pampering and beauty before her 3 pm wedding. Hearing of her morning of spa treatments and relaxation endeared the petite Russian woman to Lisa immediately and they bonded quickly over a very delicious meal at Prime Steakhouse in the Bellagio.

As per Marina's detailed schedule, a trip to the courthouse for their license and a visit to the Chapel to confirm their 3 pm booking were on tap after their meal. Marina asked Lisa and Hotch to join them and all four of them piled into a limo for their trip. After their stops, they returned to the Bellagio, where they'd be staying for the weekend and spent sometime on the patio at the Fontana Bar, watching the fountain and light show, while Hotch and Sean sipped some very good scotch and Lisa and Marina enjoyed a couple of Cosmopolitans.

Finally, at sometime after midnight, they all retired to their rooms. After locking the door behind him, Hotch turned to find Lisa slipping out of the short white tank dress she'd worn.

"You're staring," she commented, stepping out of the dress to reveal a very sexy white lace bra and panty set.

"I'm sorry," he smiled, his body responding to the site before him, "But I like what I see."

"Do you now?" she laughed, as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

"Very much," he growled, backing her to the bed.

"We should be getting some sleep," she laughed, as he lay her down. "You have a 7 am tee time."

"I'm not tired," he said, his hands slipping behind her, looking for the hook on her bra. Finding none, he pulled back.

"Front closer," she laughed.

"Making it difficult for me, aye?" he smartly said, unhooking her bra and pulling it aside. He smiled.

"Why do I feel like I'm about to be ravished?" she said, with a sexy giggle that never failed to excite him further.

"Because you are," he said, bending to kiss her.

XXXXX

"So," Hotch began, looking at his younger brother, "Are you sure this is what you want?"

Sean looked up as he pulled the ball from the cup at Hole 4, "Yeah, it is. Marina's something else, Aaron. She's so totally out of my league, it's not funny. But she actually loves me."

"There's no accounting for taste," Hotch laughed.

"And what about you? Hooking up with Lisa," Sean shook his head, as they got into the golf cart for the ride to the next tee. "It's about damn time you took advantage of having something that hot right under your nose."

Hotch laughed at his brother's comment. "Yeah, well…"

"Damn, Aaron, you're really into her," Sean said, with a laugh. "This isn't just a friends with benefits kinda thing."

"Far from it," he admitted, watching as his brother processed his response. "I'm in love with her, Sean."

"I never thought I'd see this," Sean said, his tone more serious than teasing, "You've gotten over Hayley."

He narrowed his eyes at his brother, "Did you have to bring her up?"

"Sore subject?"

"That's putting it mildly."

"Let me guess, she knows about you and Lisa and isn't too happy about it?"

"Again, that's putting it mildly," Hotch replied, then, tiredly, "I guess things were good when she had her new man but I was still mourning the relationship, but now that things are on equal footing, she's not happy."

"Did you expect her to be?"

"I don't know what I expected. I didn't expect to be in a relationship with Lisa, that's for damn sure. I can't imagine how Hayley felt."

Hotch got out of the cart and set his ball on the tee. After lining up his shot, he hit a long drive.

"Nice shot," Sean nodded, then set down his own ball. He lined up his shot, then hit a drive nearly as long as Hotch's. "Shit, you're still better than me."

"And we both suck," Hotch laughed, getting back into the cart.

"So what's the deal with you and Lisa," Sean asked, as he drove the cart.

"We're…involved," he decided.

"Involved," Sean repeated, causing Hotch to look at him.

"Yeah, involved," he concluded, wondering what was wrong with his terminology.

"Involved," Sean said again,"You know, Aaron, you still have the romantic skills of a gnat."

"I'll have you know I have excellent romantic skills."

"For someone so freaking smart, you're an idiot," Sean laughed, "I'm not talking about sex, Aaron. I'm talking about…you know…romance."

"Oh, and you're the expert on romance," he snickered.

"I'm a chef," Sean grinned, "I work with food, I spent a year in Italy, I speak the language of love. I can teach you a thing or two."

Hotch rolled his eyes, "The day I have to take romance lessons from you, is the day I hang it up."

"Yeah, well, I'm getting married tonight, what are you doing?"

"I'm having a weekend in Las Vegas with my girlfriend," he said.

"Mark my words," Sean said, stopping the cart. "Weddings do strange things to women. You're going to have to sharpen those romantic skills, Big Brother."

"Can we just play golf here?" Hotch said, stepping up to his ball. He tapped it, sending it to within 5 inches of the cup, then sinking the put. Taking his ball from the cup, he walked to the side of the green, watching while Sean finished.

Despite himself, he thought about his brother's words. Sure, he wasn't some sonnet spouting romantic, but Lisa wasn't the kind of woman who needed that. She cringed at the sugary romantic stuff, nearly as much as he did. They had their own version of romance and it worked well for them.

XXXXX

Looking back at it, Lisa couldn't remember when she'd enjoyed a day more. Her morning of pampering and beauty treatments soothed her body and soul and helping Marina prepare for her wedding was so very much fun. As they dressed, they sipped champagne and took pictures with their digital cameras, laughing like teen age girls. Before leaving the room to meet the men for their ride to the Viva Las Vegas Wedding Chapel, they made a promise to keep in touch and promise to keep in touch and do their best to bring the Hotchner brothers together more often.

Despite their misgivings about having a wedding in a Vegas Chapel, Lisa was quite surprised at how nice the place actually was. Sure, it was no National Cathedral, but there was something pretty about the candles and twinkling white lights. The ceremony was performed by a Reverend, not an Elvis impersonator, and was amazingly emotional and romantic.

As she and Hotch were standing up for Sean and Marina, they stood on either side of the couple. She wasn't surprised that each time she stole a glace at him, he was looking right back at her. As she stood, listening to the Reverend talking about commitment and love and sharing their lives together, she felt closer to Hotch than she ever had. Not one for soupy romantic fantasies, she allowed herself a moment to picture the two of them exchanging vows, but only a moment, as she felt like a sappy high school girl for doing it. _What's next, O'Reilly? Signing your name on your notebook as "Mrs. Aaron Hotchner"? _

Feeling herself blushing, she watched as Sean and Marina exchanged vows that they'd wrote themselves and then exchanged rings. As the Reverend invited them to share their first kiss, she returned her eyes to Hotch and gave him a smile.

He returned the smile and added a wink before turning his attention back to the Reverend who announced the new "Mr. and Mrs. Sean Hotchner." After exchanging hugs, the newly married couple stepped aside to have their pictures taken, leaving Lisa and Hotch alone.

He stepped to her and with a smile said, "Should we have thought to bring rice?"

"I'm sure they sell it out front," she returned, as he took her hand. Automatically, their fingers intertwined. "So, that wasn't what I thought it would be."

He shook his head, "I think I liked that ceremony better than my wedding."

"Oh, I know I liked it better than mine," she agreed, "This one didn't have Monsignor Spignoli going on for ten minutes about how it was their job to bring many children into the world."

"He didn't," Hotch laughed.

"Oh, he did," she nodded, "If it wasn't for the damn corset top of my dress being so tight, I would have fallen asleep."

"Corset top, huh?" he said, with a playfully raised eyebrow.

Lisa shook her head, "You can be such a male sometimes."

"Are you guys ready to get this wedding reception on the road?" Sean asked, as the photographer walked away.

"I know I could use a drink," Marina grinned, her arm around Sean's waist. "Come on, Lisa. Let's go see if we can find more Cosmos."


	11. Vegas Adventure Part 2

"_**Always do sober what you said you'd do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut."**_

_**Ernest Hemingway**_

For the second night in a row, they sat at on the patio at the Fontana Bar, enjoying the clear August night. Still dressed from the wedding, they sat comfortably, sipping at their drinks, laughing and talking.

Tonight, however, had a different vibe to it. Sean and Marina were the picture of a newly married couple, clearly in love and completely happy. Hotch was glad to see that his brother was settling down with someone whom he truly cared for, someone who truly loved him in return.

Turning to look at Lisa, he knew he had found the same thing. He considered himself lucky that the gorgeous redhead in the blue silk dress, the one who'd turned heads as they walked through the casino, was with him. She was sitting as close to him as two separate chairs would allow, her hand resting on his thigh, its heat burning into his leg.

"So, Aaron," Marina began, "Tell me the truth, have you changed your mind about my Vegas wedding idea?"

"It was nothing like I imagined, Marina," he sincerely said, "Actually, it was much better than I thought it would be."

"Lisa?" she asked, "What did you think?"

"I think I enjoyed it more than I enjoyed my wedding!" Lisa smiled, "No pre cana classes, no Monsignor Spignoli, no having to do the chicken dance and the Continental with Uncle Pat."

"Well, next time, you'll have to do it this way," Sean said, winking at his brother.

"Maybe next time, I will," Lisa smartly replied, as the band began to play. After a moment, Lisa recognized the song. "Oh…At Last…I love this song."

Hotch stood, holding out his hand, "Would you like to dance?" He watched as she smiled, a true, full smile, and then took his hand. "We'll be back," he said, exchanging a nod with Sean, and then leading her to the dance floor. He took her into his arms and for a few moments, they danced, listening as the singer did a mean Etta James impersonation.

"At last, the skies above are blue. My heart was wrapped up in clovers, the night I looked at you. I found a dream that I could speak to, a dream that I can call my own. I found a thrill to rest my cheek to, a thrill that I have never known," she sang.

He pulled back a bit and studied her face, finding her smiling at him. "What's that look for?"

She shook her head, and with an impish smile, she said, "Nope…too many Cosmos…too much romance. Not going to say what I'm thinking."

"After a build up like that," he laughed, "You have to say it."

"You'll either laugh at me or run for the hills," she said, suddenly being coy.

There was something sexy about her trying to be coy and his body was responding to it, threatening to pull the oxygen from his brain before he could get her to divulge her thoughts. The look in her eyes told him that he needed to hear those thoughts, so he pressed on.

"Considering some of the things that I've heard come from those lips of yours, I doubt heading for the hills is an option," he said. This answer satisfied her and a soft smile curled those lips.

"I was thinking," she began, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, "That it's time to call off the moratorium I placed on talking about long term commitment."

Something about those words should have caused horror to rage through his brain, but it didn't. Instead, he smiled and said, "So, long term commitment would be a possibility?"

"A very viable possibility, I believe."

"Of course, you're speaking of long term commitment between you and me, correct?"

She nodded, "Yes, I am. What are your views on this development, SSA Hotchner?"

"Well, SSA O'Reilly, it certainly has its merits," he agreed, kissing her softly. His tone grew soft, "I could very easily spend the rest of my life with you."

He watched as her smile spread, her green eyes sparkling. She kissed him softly and then pulled back and studied his eyes as if she was searching for something. "Marry me, Aaron Hotchner; spend the rest of your life with me."

He took a moment to process what had just happened, watching as worry crept into her hopeful expression. "Did you just propose to me?"

"I did," she firmly said, "I know, you're Mr. Traditional…"

He cut her off with a kiss, "Yes, I'll marry you."

Surprise registered on her features, "You said yes…"

"I did," he laughed.

"You're not mad that I asked? You're not freaked out that I'd even think…"

He kissed her again. "I'm not mad that you asked nor am I freaked out that you'd think about us being married." He debated his next words for a moment, wondering if he should open himself up that much. As he looked into her deep green eyes, he found his old friend, Lisa, the one he could bare his soul to, the one who'd seen him at his worst and didn't bat an eye, and any doubt he had evaporated, allowing him to speak the words he'd hesitated to say. "I'd been thinking of it myself."

"Really?" she asked, clearly surprised.

"Really," he concluded.

"Oh my God, did this just happen?" she asked, laughing, not noticing that they'd stopped dancing and were attracting stares.

"I believe it did," he laughed with her.

"We're getting married," she said, throwing her arms around him and holding him tight.

'We are," he returned, holding her just as tight. "Damn you, you vile woman," he laughed, "You beat me to the whole proposal."

"Leave it to me to screw up your plans," she laughed. "Should we go tell Sean and Marina?"

"And then we can leave them alone to celebrate their wedding night," he said, kissing her, "While we do some celebrating of our own."

XXXXX

"So," Lisa began, falling back onto the pillows, willing her breathing to return to normal. "Now that we've properly celebrated, should we begin the planning phase of the program?"

"Can I catch my breath before we have to look at invitation samples and go to cake tastings?" he asked, turning his head to look at her.

"You catch your breath while I talk," she smiled, rolling onto her side to face him. "Let's do it here."

"We just did it," he wryly said, "I'm not sure I can do it again that fast."

"No wise ass, not "do it", I mean let's get married here," she said, hoping that her anxiousness wouldn't send him running.

"Get married here?" he repeated.

'Yes, let's just do it and go home already married," she went on, not knowing if she was trying to convince him, or herself.

"Lisa," he began, his expression and his voice serious, "I love you and I want to marry you, but I want to do this the right way."

"The right way?" she asked, wondering where he was taking this.

"Yes, the way we're supposed to it," he countered, "With an engagement and a wedding, there's a natural progression to this whole thing. You've done it before, you know how it works. Jesus, Lisa, you don't even have a ring."

She smiled, genuinely touched by his words. "I don't need a ring…"

"The hell you don't," he firmly said, "There are just some traditions I won't give up."

"Okay," she laughed, giving into his views. "When we get home, we'll go look for a ring."

"And we'll plan a wedding," he promised.

"Not a big huge event," she said with a frown. "I can't do it again."

"I promise," he said, his smile devilish, "No Monsignor Spignoli, no pre cana classes."

"Okay," she agreed, kissing him softly, "We'll wait until we get home."

XXXXX

When he woke the next morning, he knew what he needed to do and made it his mission to do it before she woke up. However, as he slipped out of bed, he caused her to stir and slowly open her eyes. Cursing himself for not being stealthier, he kissed her softly.

"Running for the hills?" she asked with a drowsy smile.

"Not a chance," he laughed, "I was going to surprise you with coffee, but you woke up."

"I can fall back to sleep while you shower and get coffee," she said, arching her back as she stretched. "I promise, I'll look surprised."

He kissed her again, ignoring his body's desire to crawl back under the blankets with her. "Wise ass. Go back to sleep. I'll wake you when I come back."

"'kay," she yawned, rolling back onto her side and closing her eyes.

He showered and dressed quickly. Finding that she had fallen back to sleep, he slipped out of the room quietly and made his way down to the lobby. He'd promised her coffee, but that wasn't the real reason for his trip. Passing the coffee shop, he made a mental note to actually stop and pick some up on his way back to the room.

He kept walking until he reached the shops in the lobby. Standing in the center of the huge lobby, he looked around at the high end stores that surrounded him. Finding what he wanted, he made a bee line for the door way of the Tiffany and Company store. He supposed it was the early hour, but the store was nearly empty and the staff was quite attentive.

Of course, at the prices they charged, they should be attentive, very attentive. They helped him settle on a one carat cushion cut diamond, surrounded by bead set diamonds. He knew she didn't really wear a lot of gold jewelry, so the platinum setting and band were something she would like. Things were going just as planned until they threw a monkey wrench at him and asked her ring size.

_Damn it, Hotchner! _His mind raged, _What did you think? They're one size fits all? Come on, man, you've done this before, get with the program!_

After a few moments of mentally dressing himself down, he stopped gaping at the sales man, remembering that in the past, he'd held her rings at the range, while she was doing competitive shooting. To insure he wouldn't lose them, he'd slip them onto his pinky finger. With a laugh, he explained this to Pasquale, the salesman. Apparently, Pasquale had heard this one before and didn't laugh when he sized his pinky.

They'd sized the ring while he waited and in a mere half an hour, he'd made one of the largest purchases he'd made in some time. Carrying the tiffany blue bag, he made sure to stop at the coffee shop. Hands full with his purchases, he returned to the room.

He expected to find her sleeping, so he entered the room quietly. The sound of the television told him she was awake. "Honey, I'm home," he called out, walking back to the bed. He found her sitting up, tears streaming down her face. What the hell had happened in the forty five minutes he'd been gone? Had she changed her mind?

"Lisa," he began, immediately concerned. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, wiping her eyes with a tissue.

He set the coffee and the Tiffany bag on the night stand and sat on the bed next to her, pulling her into his arms. "Talk to me…what is it?"

"This fucking movie," she sobbed.

Relief flooded through him and he released the breath he'd been holding. "What movie?"

"The Notebook," she sniffed.

He remembered that movie. Hayley had made him sit through it a few times and each time, she sobbed her way through most of the movie. That was Hayley, though. She liked "chick flicks", the more of a tear jerker the better. Lisa, on the other hand, avoided chick flicks like the plague and very rarely cried at movies, although he recalled that she did shed a few tears while watching "Braveheart".

"Hey," he softly said, kissing her forehead. "It's just a movie."

"I know," she said, blotting her eyes, "But he just loved her so much and the whole thing about her having Alzheimer's and not knowing him…" her eyes filled with tears again.

"That's it," he said, picking up the remote and turning off the television, "No more chick flicks for you." He needed her to stop crying so that he could give her the very overpriced diamond in the tiffany blue box that he'd just purchased.

"Would you do that for me?" she asked.

"Would I do what for you?" he countered, pulling his mind back to the movie and trying to remember what exactly the lead character did.

"Not leave my side, even if I had Alzheimer's and didn't know who you were?"

That question took him totally off guard. It wasn't something he expected to hear come out of her mouth, although, he'd have thought she knew the answer. Either way, he smiled at her and softly said, "Isn't that what the "til death do you part" section is referring to?"

She nodded, "I'm being a fool," she laughed, "This is why I don't watch this crap. So, did you get me coffee?"

"Chocolate hazelnut," he said, with a knowing smile.

"I do love you," she grinned, tears still in her eyes. "Where is it?"

"It's here," he said, reaching back onto the nightstand and pulling the box out of its bag. "But I've got something for you first."

"Something before coffee?" she asked, brows raised. "If it comes before caffeine, it had better be good."

"I think you'll like it," he said, handing her the box.

Surprise registered on her face, "Tiffany's? Hotch, what did you do?"

"I put on a ski mask and robbed the place," he dismissed, "Just open it."

She removed the lid from the blue box and then pulled out a smaller, blue velvet ring box. He watched as excitement danced in her eyes. She looked up at him, then back to the box.

"Is this what I think it is?" she asked.

_Damn, woman_, he thought, _just open the God Damned box! _But he said, "Why don't you open it and find out?"

He watched as she opened the box and gasped, her eyes grew wide.

"So, do you like it?"

"Oh my God," she said, and he knew he'd made the right choice. "It's…amazing."

He took the box from her hands and removed the ring. "Give me your hand," he said. She did as he asked and he slipped the ring on her finger, saying a silent prayer of thanks that it really did fit. "Now, we're properly engaged."

"Now, can we start the planning portion?" she asked, with a grin. "If you want to go home and do the whole wedding thing, we need to start working on it."

"I've been thinking about that," he seriously said, "Your first idea was probably right on target."

"My first idea?"

"Getting married here," he said, watching as her smile grew.

"Do you want to?"

"Why not," he agreed. "Think we can pull it off before our flight leaves tomorrow?"

"Have you forgotten who you're speaking to?" she smartly said, "What time it it?"

"Nine am."

"Okay, I need to get up and get in the shower. We're going to have to get moving if we want to do this today." With a quick peck on the lips, she was out of bed and into the bathroom.

Leaning back on the pillows, he shut his eyes and took a deep breath, taking a moment to relax. He knew, that until they said "I do" at some point later today, this would be the last moment of rest he'd be getting.


	12. Vegas Adventure Part 3

"_**The bond that links your true family is not one of blood, but of respect and joy in each other's life."**_

_**Richard Bach**_

Once Lisa emerged from the shower, she jumped into orchestrating the wedding. Sipping the now luke warm coffee, she created a list of her own. Written on hotel stationary in Lisa's obsessively neat script, it might not have been as professional as Marina's but it certainly was as detailed.

He watched, as she sat on the bed, wearing a pair of jeans and a blue and white striped button front shirt that he knew she stole from his closet, thinking about how amazingly sexy he found her when she was on a mission like this.

"Are you going to stand there and stare at me with a stupid smile or are you going to help me?" she asked, with a smile.

"Sorry," he returned, sitting on the end of the bed. "What do you have down so far?"

"Okay, the obvious, marriage license, chapel, rings…" she looked at him, "I guess we can just wear what we were going to wear to dinner tonight."

"You need a dress," he decided.

"I brought a dress," she dismissed.

"It's our wedding," he firmly said, "You need a dress."

Lisa laughed, shaking her head. "Okay, I'll get a dress."

"There was a white dress in the window of one of the stores downstairs…" he recalled, "It looked like something you'd like."

"Which store? What did it look like?" she asked, with that wry smile that he'd come to love.

"Okay, you know my fashion sense is contained to don't wear a plaid tie with a striped shirt," he laughed, knowing she'd push him to describe the dress. "But, it was in the window of Yves Saint Laurent and it was white…"

"Okay…"

"And it had a black bow kinda thing around the waist…and black trim," he grew frustrated, "Oh, hell, Lisa, it looked like something you'd pick out. It's down in the window. Go take a look."

"Okay," she grinned, writing on her list. "Get dress."

"Well, that's it, right? What else is there?"

"Well, what about everybody at home?"

"What about them?" he asked, wondering where she was taking things.

"They can be a part of this," she went on, tentatively. "They can watch on line."

He'd forgotten about that part of the program. He supposed it was only fair, as they weren't inviting everyone to big wedding, that they'd have the option of watching it on line. "That's not a bad idea, but how are we going to let them know?"

Lisa flashed an evil grin, "One simple call to the Goddess of All Knowledge and anyone we want will be linked in."

Garcia. He should have thought of that. Telling her would be a necessity, otherwise he'd incur the wrath of the crafty technical analyst and God only knows what she could do with her skills. With an involuntary shiver, he nodded. "Please, call her. I fear for my credit record."

Lisa laughed, picked up her cell phone and handed it to him, "Here, take a picture of my ring."

"What?"

"Just do it," she said.

He snapped a picture of the ring with her cell phone and handed it back to her, watching as she quickly sent the picture to Garcia.

"Now, watch this…" Lisa said, "Three…two…one…" And her phone rang. "Hello, Pen," she laughed.

"Is that what I think it is?" the excited voice of Penelope Garcia asked. "Is that a diamond?"

"From Tiffany's yet," Lisa giggled., as he sat on the bed next to her.

"Tell the Boss Man he done good," Garcia said, loud enough that he could hear it.

"Thanks, Garcia," he returned, "I know I did."

"Oh, shit," Garcia laughed, "He's there, too."

"Yeah, he is…so anyway…I need your help."

"You name it, my little ginger snap, what can I do for you?"

XXXXX

After securing Garcia's aide in alerting the folks at home about the impending nuptuals, they rousted Sean and Marina from their honeymoon splendor with their news. Both of them were immediately on board with the plan and once more, the four of them piled into a limo and made the trip to Clark County Courthouse, followed by a visit to the Viva Las Vegas Wedding Chapel.

They walked into the lobby and were met by Cedric, the very same gentleman who worked with Sean and Marina. To their surprise, he remembered them instantly.

"Sean! Marina!" he said, excitedly, "You're back! Don't tell me you want a vow renewal that quickly!"

"Actually, we're here for them," Sean said, jerking his thumb at Hotch and Lisa. "Seems my big brother wants to follow in my footsteps."

Cedric turned to them. "Congratulations! Now…your names were…." He thought for a moment, then, "Lisa and Aaron, right?"

Lisa laughed at the flamboyant man's excitement, "Yes."

"Come on, let's get you set up," he replied, ushering them back to his office. "Now," he said, sitting down at his desk, "When would you like to do this?"

"Today," Hotch said.

"Oh," Cedric frowned, "Today…"

"Will that be a problem?" he asked, a brow raised.

"Well, it's a Saturday," Cedric explained, flipping open a leather bound book, "We're pretty booked up. What about tomorrow?"

"We can't, Cedric," Lisa tried, feeling their plans coming to a screeching halt. "We're flying home at 1."

"Let me check with the desk," he said, standing, "I'll be right back." He bustled off, leaving the foursome in the small office.

"There are a lot of other chapels," Marina offered. "I've heard the Chapel of the Flowers is very nice."

"Let's see what Cedric comes up with," Hotch said, squeezing her hand, reassuringly.

Cedric walked back into the room. "Well, I've got good news for you! We've had a cancellation tonight at 7. But there's a catch. It was a theme wedding. Seems we had two of the same back to back, so we can't change it. We can fit you in, but you have to take it, theme and all."

"A theme wedding?" Hotch asked, wincing at the possibilities.

"A theme could be fun," Sean offered, watching as his brother's spine stiffened.

"What theme?" Lisa asked, clearly curious.

"Tom Jones," Cedric concluded. "It's one of our most sedate themes, Aaron. Its really nothing more than having Tom Jones singing at your wedding."

He fixed Lisa with a faux withering glance and said, "This is payback for not getting you tickets to his show isn't it?"

Lisa laughed, knowing that of all of the possibilities she'd read on the sign out front, this was probably the one she'd be able to sell him on.

"Aaron," Sean said, "You've got to do it."

"It would be great!" Marina agreed. "Tom Jones is the ultimate in Vegas entertainment."

"That's Wayne Newton," Hotch smartly returned, "But at least it's not Celine Dion."

"I can fit you in tomorrow morning at 10," Cedric offered. "I've got a nice, normal wedding in our gazebo. You'd be done in plenty of time to make your plane home."

"You choose," Lisa said, watching as he processed the offer.

"We'll take the Tom Jones," he returned, looking at her. "I want a wedding night, not a dash to the plane to get home."

She smiled broadly, as Cedric said, "Okay…then let's get the paperwork going."

XXXXX

With a growing nervousness, Hotch stood near the small lighted stage. The day had gone by in a blur of shopping, planning, and laughter.

As he'd guessed, Lisa fell in love with the white dress in the window and it looked amazing on her. She nearly balked at the price tag, but after Marina reminded them how much they would have spent doing the full wedding extravaganza when they got home, she ponied up her credit card and purchased the dress and a pair of shoes to go with it.

Another stop at Tiffany's produced a pair of matching platinum wedding bands that were once again sized while they waited. All of the shopping was documented by Marina's omnipresent camera and Lisa's quick cell phone shots that were sent back home both Garcia and Lisa's sister Kelli, both of whom gave their approval via text message.

Their blur of a day went by all too quickly and before he could stop to think, he was standing between his younger brother and a damn good Tom Jones impersonator, watching the videographer set up and waiting for Lisa to walk into the chapel.

"How are ya, Aaron?" Sean asked.

"Good," he lied, not willing to admit to his brother that he was nervous.

Sean saw through it, "Is that why your jaw is clenched nearly as tight as your fist?"

Hotch laughed, "When did you get to be so damned observant?"

"I learned from a pro," Sean winked, then, quietly, "You've got nothing to worry about. Aaron. You've definitely scored a winner with Lisa."

"Yeah," he smiled, "I think I did."

"Gentlemen," "Tom Jones" began, with a damn spot on British voice, "We're ready to begin. The videographer will be turning on the live feed in ten seconds."

Standing straight and willing all nervousness from his system, Hotch turned is attention to the end of the aisle, waiting for Lisa to appear.

XXXXX

Meanwhile, back at Quantico, Garcia had passed the word to the BAU team and they'd all gathered in Garcia's apartment, throwing an impromptu wedding party.

"I cannot believe Hotch is taking the plunge again," Morgan said, shaking his head.

"It's Lisa," Prentiss dismissed, "I'm surprised it took this long." Seeing Morgan's doubtful expression, she said, "Come on, Morgan, tell me you didn't see this whole thing coming?"

"Really, my Mocha Man Candy," Garcia said, pouring everyone a glass of champagne, "As much as they tried to hide it, you could just tell they were heading to the altar."

"They did exhibit classing signs of a couple in love," Reid agreed, "Although, they tried to hold it to a minimum, Had we not had profiling back grounds we might have missed out on most of them."

"Reid," Prentiss said, rolling her eyes. "Just don't…"

"I'm just surprised they're doing it in Vegas," JJ ventured, picking up a carrot stick and taking a bite.

"That's Lisa," Rossi knowingly said, drawing a barely contained black look from the diminutive blonde. "I can't picture Hotch being that spontaneous."

"Hey, Guys," Garcia excitedly said, "It's starting!" She maximized the screen and they all gathered in to watch.

"Hotch looks like he's going to have a stroke," Morgan laughed, drawing a swat from Garcia. "Ow, Momma, look at the man!"

"He does look nervous," Reid said, "His jaw is clenched tightly…"

"Reid!" Prentiss said, causing the young profiler to grow silent.

"Oh," Garcia began, her eyes misting, "Look at Lisa…"

"Wow, Yves Saint Laurent," Prentiss nodded appreciatively, "Good choice."

"And look at Hotch," Garcia went on, fixing Morgan with a glare, "Still think he looks nervous?"

Morgan softened, "Nah, Momma, he doesn't look nervous any more."

"I do love the Tom Jones impersonator," Rossi snickered. "That one's going to haunt him for a long time."

"It could have been worse," Garcia allowed, "They also had the Elvis Blue Hawaii wedding."

They turned their attention back to the screen where "Tom Jones" was speaking.

XXXXX

"Lisa and Aaron have come here today to join their lives together, to become husband and wife. We're going to do this ceremony a bit differently than we normally do today and stick more to the traditional."

"Yeah, I was wondering if Hotch would explode when the guy started singing What's New Pussy Cat," Morgan snickered, drawing another swat from Garcia.

"Please turn to each other and join hands," "Tom Jones" began, once they had done so, he said, "Lisa, you've come here freely and of your own will with a desire to join your lives. Do you promise to love, honor and cherish this man, to care for him in good times and bad, in sickness and health, until death do you part?"

"I do," Lisa replied, with a smile.

"Tom Jones" turned to Hotch and said, "Aaron, you've come here freely and of your own will with a desire to join your lives. Do you promise to love, honor and cherish this man, to care for him in good times and bad, in sickness and health, until death do you part?"

"I do," Hotch replied, winking at Lisa.

"And now," Tom Jones returned with a smile, "We'd like to give the bride and groom a chance to share with each other their feelings. Lisa?"

XXXXX

"They had no idea that was coming," Prentiss laughed. "Did you see the look of total abject fear that flickered across both of their faces!"

"Shh!!!!" Garcia said, "Lisa's going to say something!"

XXXXX

"Hotch…Aaron," she laughed nervously, then, "You've been my friend, my rock, and my partner in crime. We've grown together, seen each other to hell and back more times than I can count and we've had some nights that bordered on insane with the amount of fun and laughter we experienced. There's been no other man who's known me the way you do and loved me in spite of it. As we're standing here, I keep thinking back to last weekend when we were putting Jack to bed. He asked us to take turns reading to him from his Winnie the Pooh book. There was this one passage that you read that has stuck in my mind since then. I think it sums up our relationship and the way I feel about you. Winnie said, "If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together, there is something you must always remember, you are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we're apart… I'll always be with you." I love you, Aaron Michael Hotchner and I always will."

Tom Jones turned to Hotch and said, "Aaron?"

Hotch took a moment, then spoke, "Lisa, you've been my co-worker, my friend, my confidant, and now, you are my reason for getting up every morning. I fell in love with your soul, which was only enhanced by your beauty. No matter how old we grow together, I promise that you'll always look the same to me because I know the real you. I know the Lisa that you hide from the rest of the world and I promise that I will make sure that you never regret letting me know and love that part of you. We read Darby in college, and he said to "give me, instead of beauty's bust, a tender heart, a loyal mind, which with temptation I could trust." I promise that we will always share our secrets and our dreams and we will always be able to trust each other because of this love. I love you, Lisa Rose O'Reilly and I always will."

XXXXX

"You okay, Pen?" Prentiss asked, blinking back a tear.

"Yes," Garcia sniffed, then blew her nose with a resounding trumpet. "I'm fine."

Meanwhile, in the back of the room, JJ sat, blotting her own tears.

"Are you okay, Jennifer?" Rossi quietly asked, handing her another tissue.

She nodded, taking the tissue from him. "I never really knew how they felt about each other."

"And here I thought it was obvious," he mused.

She shook her head, "I don't know, Dave. A Vegas wedding? That might be Lisa, but it's totally out of left field for Hotch. I had my doubts, until he said those vows…"

"You know, Bella," he said, his voice quiet. "That could be us. Just say the word and I'll make it happen."

JJ looked at him, surprise etched on her features, "David…are you asking me to marry you?"

"I am," he said, "If you'll have me."

"Yes," she said, without a moment's hesitation. "Yes," she repeated, throwing her arms around him and kissing him deeply.

XXXXX

Much later that night, Lisa and Hotch lay in bed, their arms around each other. Lisa held up her hand in the dim light from the bathroom, watching her ring sparkle.

"I must say, SSA Hotchner," she began, "You did do a fine job with the ring selection."

"I'm glad you like it, SSA Hotchner," he returned in kind, causing Lisa to giggle. "What?"

"That's going to be so strange….two SSA Hotchners running around," she mused.

"You don't have to change your name," he said, running his hand along her arm.

"The hell I don't," she said, turning to him. "I'm an old fashioned girl."

He laughed, drawing a swat from her. "Hey, no spousal abuse before the ink is dried on the marriage license."

"Speaking of ink being dried, can you believe Dave proposed to JJ? In front of the whole team? I thought Pen was going to have a stroke."

"Guess we started a trend, didn't we?"

"That we did," She returned, kissing him softly. "Tell me something?"

"What?"

"Are you happy?"

He smiled at her, wishing he were able to convey to her just how happy he was, but knowing words would fail him miserably.

"And that smile," Lisa said, "Tells me everything I need to know."

"And what about you, are you happy?"

Between kisses, she said, "I am completely and utterly happy."

"Keep that up and you're going to be more than happy," he laughed, his body responding to her with a surprising fierceness.

"Take it easy, Romeo," she giggled, as he leaned above her, "We've got the rest of our lives for that."

He kissed her softly, tenderly, and echoed her words, "We've got the rest of our lives. I like the sound of that."

"Me, too," she returned, "And we need to make plans, figure this out…"

He cut her off with a kiss that was anything but soft and tender, "And we've got the rest of our lives for that, too. But tonight, we need to celebrate." He kissed her again.

Returning the kiss with passion, she stared him down and said, "Bring it on."


End file.
